Charming & Charmless
by SolarNaylor
Summary: Ino hated guys like him. You know, the kind of guys who thought they were so great because they had enough money to buy the whole world. He was everything those dramas portrayed rich arrogant guys to be and there was no way in hell she would help him.
1. One: First Impressions

_Charming and Charmless_

_Summary: Ino hated guys like him. You know, the kind of guys who thought they were so great because they had enough money to buy the whole world. He was everything those dramas portrayed rich arrogant guys to be and there was no way in hell would she help him. Nope. No way in hell._

* * *

**_Charming and Charmless_**

**_One-First Impressions_**

* * *

Neji didn't like many things. He didn't like lazy people, people with no self-confidence (the only exception was Hinata), disloyalty, indecisive people, liars and cheap wine or beer. He loathed anything thing cheap, especially his beer.

When Lee invited him to drink at the new Tokyo Bar, he was expecting something amazing. Something magical that would make him forget all his troubles even more than regular alcohol; a liquid version of crack, he called it.

The restaurant had only been open for about two months, and it had very high ratings, so he trusted Lee's decision to make an appearance.

"Wow! This place is huge!" Lee said excitedly as he sat on the bar stool, Neji joining him. The brunette haired man looked around suspiciously. He didn't make it a habit to come to downtown Tokyo often. He hated the place. The people here were loud, and reeked of cheapness.

The restaurant _had better_ meet his expectations.

"Welcome to Tokyo Bar! My name is Ino, and I'll be your bartender tonight!" A bubbly blonde haired woman grinned, standing in front of him and Lee, wearing a half cut shirt. Her ocean blue eyes instantly reminded Neji of another blue eyed idiot he knew. He shuddered at the thought of his cousin and that _moron_ together.

The woman continued to talk as she began dancing around with the drinks Lee had ordered for them. Neji stared at her as she continued to grin while prancing around like a fool. Neji didn't understand a bartender's need to dance.

'_She was probably a stripper before she became a bartender.' _

No women in her right mind would happily dance half naked in front of men unless they were strippers or just that easy. The thought of such a woman disgusted him.

"Excuse me!" Another bartender said walking behind her quickly with a bottle of Bacardi and glass cups in his hands. The space behind the bar table was too small for both of them and ultimately pushed her a bit.

As if in slow motion, Neji watched as the drinks landed on him, messing up his newly bought suit and his hair. His recently washed hair! He could hear the stripper women gasp, as the rest of the bar got silent.

"Boss!" Lee panicked, as he watched in fear, waiting for Neji's reaction.

"Sir, I'm so sorry!" Stripper women said as she immediately grabbed some towels from behind the bar table. She hopped onto the bar table as she attempted to "clean" him up. Neji, already angry as it was watched completely enraged.

"Stop." He said calmly.

She obviously didn't hear him because she continued. He was trying his best not to sucker punch her right then and there.

"Are you deaf or dumb? I said stop!" He yelled.

This time she heard him and she stopped.

"I'm just trying to help," She said annoyed at his demanding tone.

"You've helped enough. Stop making excuses as to why you're touching me." He glared whipping off his suit jacket.

"Wait, what? You think I spilled the beer on you on purpose?" She asked, her face getting red from anger.

"M-ma'am…please w-watch your tone." Lee did his best to calm the hot blooded women.

"Watch my tone? I'm tired of you snobby rich brats coming into this bar thinking you own everything. Get the hell over it, it's only beer!" She yelled.

Neji started at her in awe. She had balls.

"You have some nerve woman. You know why you even have this job? Because I invested my money in this damn bar. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't have a job or a place to work in. I own this place." He challenged and it was the truth. He owned 15 percent of Tokyo Bar.

Her piercing blue eyes, met his annoyed brown eyes.

"So that makes you superior? Fine." She threw the towel at him. "I won't clean up after you. You can clean up after yourself!" She said and turned away from him.

"Can I get you something to drink?" Her attention was now at another group of people. They watched fearfully, as she smiled at them.

"She better not be here when I come back." Neji huffed, then stormed out of the bar, throwing the white towel on the floor.

* * *

Chouji and Ino stared at their boss, one more frightened than the other.

"What the hell were you two doing out there!" The angered man said.

"Boss, we're sorry! It was my entire fault! If I hadn't bumped into Ino, she wouldn't have spilled the drink! I take full res—"

"What are you saying Chouji? The douche bag deserved what he got! Asuma, you should have seen the way he had been looking at me the whole night, as if I'm a someone not even worthy of his presence!" Ino huffed, crossing her arms.

"I-Ino!" Chouji tried to pacify her.

Asuma looked at the woman, completely annoyed.

"Ino, that douche bag owns fifteen percent of our stocks. He's part of one of the biggest families in Tokyo. How could you just disregard him like that?"

"The same way he disregarded me as nothing more than a servant. Just because he's rich doesn't mean I should put aside my pride! Isn't it enough that I degrade myself wearing this ridiculous dressing?" She asked, just as annoyed as she pointed to her uniform.

"You're saying too much Ino!" Chouji pleaded.

Asuma sighed and put out his cigarette.

"Ino, I have a wife and a son at home that I need to feed. This is the second time you've lashed out at a customer. If my bar gets closed, I don't want it to be because of my workers. I take pride in my employees. At this very moment though, you're pissing me off. You think you're too high and mighty to wear your uniform and treat customers properly, then you can find a new job where your needs will be met."

Ino looked at him, completely stunned.

"What?" She said quietly.

"I'm letting you go, sorry." He turned to leave.

"Asuma! I'm the best bartender you have! If you let me go you'll regret it!" She yelled to him, her eyes watering up.

He looked back at her with a glare.

"I'm regretting the decision right now, but you know what I think? I think no matter how good of a bartender you are, your attitude speaks louder than your talent. I've given you several chances because of my faith in you as one of my favorite students, but quite frankly, I'm sick of your diva attitude. Sooner or later someone better will come along and replace you. Chouji, I need you to get back to work." He ordered as he walked away from the two, and then entered the bar.

Ino's eyes were beyond watery, but she couldn't bring herself to let the tears drop.

"I'm sorry Ino." Chouji sighed as he tried to comfort her.

The tears began falling, one by one.

"W-why are you sorry?" She smiled at him boldly. "I h-hate this job anyway. Y-you better g-get in there before he fires y-you too." She whipped her blue eyes.

He gave her a hug.

"I'll go get your stuff, wait here." He said, releasing her, and then walked back into the bar.

It started with a sob or two, then her nose started running as the waterfall rolled in. She couldn't hold back her emotions anymore and let it all out in the dark alley.

She didn't understand why she lost her job. Yea, maybe she shouldn't have said what she said about her provocative uniform, but it was truth. As much as she loved her curves, she didn't like giving everybody a glance of it. She wasn't that confident. And that jerk! All she was trying to do was help him! He didn't have to undermine her!

She heard the door of bar open, and she quickly cleaned her face. She didn't want anyone to see her cry. She wasn't that weak.

"Thanks Chouji." She said, as she turned to face someone who was not Chouji.

"I knew you'd be crying." A man with carefree look said.

Ino gasped at the man. He had dark hair pulled into a pony tail and he looked rather bored.

"Shikamaru? What are you doing here?" She asked slightly embarrassed. Her tears had caused her mascara to run, and she didn't want him of all people to see her in this state.

He shrugged as he passed her the bag she had brought with her clothes in it.

"I came to get something to eat, and saw what happened earlier. I heard Asuma actually getting serious with you, so I figured he fired you. It'd only make sense you'd be crying." He said, pulling out his cigarette pack from his pocket, ready to light it.

"Yah, you of all people know I hate the smell of cigarettes. Don't smoke while I'm upset." She frowned as she pulled her sweater out of the bag.

He groaned as he put the pack away.

"Are you going home?" He asked, even though he knew the answer.

"Yeah, I'll probably grab some newspapers and start looking for a new job or I'll call my dad and see if he can let me work at the flower shop tomorrow." She mumbled as she began to walk off.

"Hey," Shikamaru called.

Ino looked back, still frowning.

"Should I walk you home?" He asked. He knew if she walked home in the dark she wouldn't be attentive to her surroundings. She'd be too busy crying to fight of the predators of the night.

Ino shrugged. Normally she'd jump at the opportunity to spend time with Shikamaru, but she really wasn't in the mood.

"Should I give you a piggy back?" He said, half jokingly. As much as he hated giving her a piggy back ride, that was one of her favorite things. He had been doing it since they were in high school.

Ino weakly smiled.

"How am I suppose to say no to that?" She said as she walked towards him. He crouched as she got on his back. She was so skinny; it felt like he was carrying air.

"Are you on a diet again?" He asked.

"Why?" She asked holding on to him, her face buried in the nape of his neck.

"You feel lighter than usual is all." He noted.

"You really know how to make me feel better." She smiled, holding on to him even tighter.

"That wasn't a complement." He smiled as they continued towards Ino's apartment.

* * *

_**So, what do you think? I've always wanted to write a InoNeji Fanfic. I hope you guys like it enough to review. There will be some grammatical errors, but I hope you can forgive me! Thanks for reading!**_


	2. Two: Bad Coincidences

_Summary: AU. Ino hated guys like him. You know, the kind of guys who thought they were so great because they had enough money to buy the whole world. He was everything those dramas portrayed rich arrogant guys to be and there was no way in hell would she help him. Nope. No way in hell._

**_*** I don't own Starbucks, the Japanese Military, Cancun, Naruto or anything else that you've may have heard about. I do own the plot, and I claim it proudly (smiley face).***_**

_****This story is an alternative universe story. Pairing include NejiInoShika, onesided InoSai, HanabiKonohamaru, ShikaTemari, NejiTen-Ten, and NaruHina.****  
_

_

* * *

**Charming and Charmless**_

_**Two- Bad Coincidences**_

* * *

Ino groaned behind the cash register of the flower shop. This was horrible. It had been a week since she lost her job at Tokyo Bar. There were many times she found herself in front of the bar, longing to go be apart of the bartender family she had gained while working there. She may have hated the job, but the people she worked with made the job worth while. Besides, she didn't want to give Asuma the satisfaction of her begging for her old job back. It was too embarrassing.

Instead of putting her pride aside, she started working at her family's flower shop, something she dreaded more than being a bartender. The vast amounts of beautifully colored flowers made her sick. She had grown up around them, and no matter how pretty they were, she never liked them. She always had bad memories from the store.

"You're as beautiful as these flowers." Inoichi, her father smiled as he walked up to her and gave her a kiss on the forehead as if she were still his ten year old daughter and not his twenty five year old daughter.

She and her father were completely identical, except perhaps she looked more feminine than he did. It was as if the old man had been reborn but this time a female.

"Dad, no matter how many times you complement me on how beautiful I am in comparison to these stupid flowers, I will never ever like them or working in this shop." She folded her arms as she took off the apron, ready to go.

"My goodness, I still don't understand why you hate the shop so much. Your mother wanted you to help her with the flower sales before you were born." He grinned.

Ino rolled her eyes at the mention of her mother.

"Then she shouldn't have left us. I'm leaving." She waved.

"Wait! You don't want to hang out with your old man today?" He frowned.

"I'm out on a job search. I'll come by and have dinner with you later tonight."

"Make sure you invite Shikamaru and Chouji over. I'm dying to beat that lazy bastard at Go and get Chouji to cook some delicious beef." Inoichi smiled.

"I can make you beef." Ino said, looking at her father confused.

"Haha, I trust your cooking love, but I trust Chouji's more!" He teased.

"Wow, now I see why you got father of the year." She smiled at her father again, and then took her leave.

Inoichi smiled as he watched his daughter go.

"No matter how much you hate her, you're just like her." He whispered to himself.

* * *

Ino sighed frustrated as she walked out of the hair salon. She really regretted not going to college. She didn't have a degree in anything, so jobs were even harder to find.

"Stupid universities, I don't see what's so special about them." She mumbled to herself as she continued walking until she stopped at a Starbucks.

"You'd think after we broke up, I'd see less of you." A rather pale man smiled. He had short black hair and was really thin, yet muscular. He had almost big brown eyes and a deceiving smile, something Ino never got used to when they dated. She learned the hard way that his smiles couldn't be trusted.

"Sai, we broke up almost a year ago. I thought you'd be over me by now, yet you're still bringing it up." She grinned as she walked towards the cash register.

"Ah, I guess I'm not." He finally gave a genuine smiled that startled Ino.

"You're still playing those stupid mind games with me and we're not even dating." She groaned. He always said stuff that inappropriately caught her off guard.

He leaned in closer to her, causing her to move back away from him.

"Are you finally over Shikamaru? If you are, maybe we can date for real now." He winked.

Ino's face immediately turned red causing her to cover his mouth with her hand and look around the semi empty shop.

"That's a secret!" She glared.

"It's pretty obvious you like him. I'm surprised with his high IQ that he still hasn't figured it out. Maybe he's dumb after all. Should I tell him we only pretended to date so you could make him jealous? That'd get his attention." He managed to get that out from his mouth being covered.

Ino turned even redder. This guy read her so easily and used his advantage to torment her.

"U-um excuse me manager, but there's a problem with one of the machines." A teenage worker said, interrupting the almost intimate position between the two.

Sai pushed Ino's hands away and faced his employee.

"I'm coming." He smiled. He looked back at Ino who was still embarrassed.

"If you're done cursing me in your head, is there something you want to talk about?" He asked her.

Ino suddenly realized why she had walked into the store.

"Let's walk after you fix the machine." She said pointing to the front door of the store.

* * *

Neji stared at the files before him completely irritated by the grammatical errors his secretary had made. He really needed to fire her. She was getting on his nerves anyway.

"Lee, start looking for a secretary." He prompted through his office phone.

"Yes sir!" His assistant said eagerly. Neji couldn't figure out why he was always eager early in the morning. If he wasn't a diligent worker, Neji would have probably fired him too, that and the fact that (even though he'd never say it loud enough for anyone to hear) Lee was one of his closest friends.

"By the way, Hinata is here to see you."

"Is her husband with her?" Neji recalled Naruto always felt the need to follow his cousin around … or maybe she was the one who always wanted him around? Either way, it was annoying to Neji.

"I'm not sure."

"If he is, tell my secretary not to let him into my office." He said, grinning evilly.

"Yes sir!"

Neji ended the conversation as he sat back in his swivel chair, waiting for his cousin to come in. It wasn't that Neji wasn't happy for his newly wed cousin and her sad excuse for a husband. He really was glad she found someone who made her happy and brought out the best in her. What he didn't understand though was why he had to be a nobody.

From his research on Naruto, his father, who had been killed right after his birth, served as one of Japan's most respected general in the army. His mother too had been a medical soldier during the war, and also died. Naruto had grown up a fighter.

Literally.

He was a boxer. He was a popular boxer too, one of Japan's appreciated jewels. The problem was that being a boxer wasn't a proper job. If Naruto stopped being popular and stopped getting sponsors, how was he suppose to take care of Hinata? He didn't understand what the hell Hinata saw in him anyway. They were complete polar opposites.

Their relationship was defying science. It was abnormal.

Neji sighed.

"If Hiashi was still alive, they would definitely not be together. I'm too much of a push over." He mumbled.

At that time, a knock could be heard from the door and Hinata peeked inside of his office.

"What are you doing? Come in." Neji smiled.

His cousin walked in wearing a bright yellow sun dress that almost blinded his eye sight. She looked different, glowing almost, as her skin was tanned. He normally pinned up long dark hair, was suddenly medium length and flowing freely. He didn't recognize her until she smiled a shy smile.

"Ni-san, I missed you," She smiled, taking a seat in front of him.

"Yeah right, how could you miss me when you were too busy tanning and god knows what else in Cancun." Neji shook his head, but smiled when he saw how quickly embarrassed she became. Same ole' Hinata.

"We didn't do anything! I promise!" Her tan was a tomato color now.

"Okay! Okay! I believe you! You look like you're about to die. How was it?" He asked.

"It was amazing! You know how I don't usually like leaving Japan right? Well I had a lot of fun in Cancun and I got to meet some of Naruto's sponsors. Even though it was scary, I watched a boxing match for the first time and ate foreign food. I think I gained some weight." She giggled like a little school girl.

"You even cut your hair." He pointed out.

"Ah, yes" She blushed, running her small fingers through her short locks. "It was too hot in Cancun to keep it up, so I decided to cut it. Do you hate it?" She asked shyly.

Neji smiled assuring her.

"I like it, as long as you did it for yourself and not because Naruto made you."

Hinata laughed.

"Naruto has been amazing for the last for weeks. He's really everything I need, I just wish you'd give him a chance." She pleaded.

"Never." Neji immediately interjected. "Any way, why the visit? Shouldn't you be preparing for Naruto's match today?"

"I am, it's just that I came to tell you something that happened while I was on my honeymoon." She said.

"What?"

"I met Ten-Ten there and we talked for a while. She said she's coming back to Tokyo in the next two weeks."

Hinata frowned slightly as there was awkward silence in the room.

* * *

Sai and Ino had been roaming around town for a while. Though the two previously dated each other, they were pretty close. Ino always founded comfort in Sai when she couldn't find it anywhere else.

"I don't even have money, yet here we are in the mall, shopping for new clothes." She grinned as she took a whiff of the beautiful dresses around her. She loved shopping. She loved clothes and shoes. They were her favorite things next to money.

"I knew this place would cheer you up." Sai smiled, following her. "Let's get something to eat." He said, pointing to a Chinese restaurant.

Ino followed him and they ordered. Of course since she was watching her weight, she only ordered something that wasn't so heavy with a lot of vegetables.

"Wow, she's that famous huh?" Sai said, staring the commercial inside the Chinese restaurant. Ino's blue eyes followed Sai's until her gaze landed on the television screen where a pink haired model was advertising foreign clothes.

Ino scowled and mumbled unpleasant words.

"How did she get so famous? I thought she was only trying to be a local model?" Sai asked curiously, oblivious to Ino who had suddenly gotten silent.

"That should be me. That witch stole my opportunity." Ino frowned.

"Wait, I thought Sakura was your best friend?"

The fierce glare that Ino gave him made him realize he shouldn't have asked such a question.

"Sorry." He said, turning back to the television screen.

"Models needed for advertising! No particular experience needed! Be at Byakugan Mall (A/N: I'm so unoriginal, haha) before 3 PM to be considered for the opportunity! Hope to see you there!"

Sai looked back at Ino who was silently eating, then at his watch, then back at the television screen.

"You need a job right?" Sai asked.

"I've told you that several times Sai." Ino responded.

"Let's go, we don't have much time." He dug in his pocket and dropped a few bills on the table, then grabbed Ino.

"What the hell Sai!" She said as she was dragged away.

"I'm trying to help you get a job! Pick up the pace or else we'll miss the chance."

Ino, who was still confused, picked up her feet. Even though she didn't know what kind of job he had in mind, it was a job none the less.

* * *

Sai quickly handed the cab fare to the cab driver as Ino was still trying to catch her breath.

"Thank you old man!" He said as he slammed the door and headed for the mall entrance.

"Sai, what the hell is going on?" Ino asked, still absolutely confused.

"They're holding auditions for models to be the face of this mall. If we don't get there by three, you won't get the chance!" He quickly explained, pushing through the people of the mall.

Just as they turned the corner, Ino blindly ran into someone, causing her to fall on her back.

"Ow!" She whined holding to her head which was now throbbing.

"Are you okay?" Sai asked, running to her said.

As she sat up, she gave him a hard shove.

"Do I look okay?" She pouted. "It's pointless to even try to make it to the auditions now."

"No it's not. There's fifteen minutes left, if we run even faster—"

"Are you not even going to ask how the person you knock down is?" An annoyed tone that sounded all too familiar to Ino asked.

She looked past Sai, and there he was, his distinctive eyes glaring directly at her. Ino did everything in her power to not leap at him and give him a good slap.

It was the same jerk who got her fired from her job.

"Do you still have the stick far up your ass? Should I come pull it out for you?" Ino said as she got up. She dusted herself as she was ready to attack him.

"Ah, and here I thought you were only manner less that night because you were having a bad night, but turns out you're just unpleasant in general." Neji glared as he got up too.

"Neji-ni! Are you okay?" A young woman about the tender age of twenty one came running up to the man. She looked like his sister with the same brunette colored hair, and her lavender colored eyes.

"Hey, aren't you being a little rude?" Sai asked, throwing in one of his fake smiles as he stood beside Ino.

"Ni-san, what's going on? Are these hoodlums harassing you? Should I call our lawyer?" The young woman asked worriedly.

"Let's go Hanabi. They probably don't have enough money to pay for food." Neji retorted as he started walking away. Hanabi gave both Ino and Sai a rude glance, then chased after her cousin.

"What the! Did he just call us poor?"Ino asked. Sai held her back by her collar.

"We have ten minutes to get to the audition, you can fight with them later." Sai said as he continued to walk towards the audition, Ino grumbling while following.

"If I ever see that jerk again, I'll kill him." Ino said as she stopped behind Sai.

"They've closed the audition!" Sai groaned.

"Ugh! It's that jerk's entire fault!" Ino frowned.

"You'd think after running dramatically through crowds of people we'd make it. My leg hurts too. I bet if we made it they would have chosen you." Sai whined. He sat on the floor, tiredly.

Ino looked at him and couldn't understand why he was more distressed about it than she was. Even though she always wanted to be a model, she wouldn't have taken the audition seriously. They would have just said the same thing they always said which was that they'd contact her if they needed her which was never.

She smiled at how eager Sai had been to help her get the position.

She jumped on him, giving him a hug.

"I shouldn't have dumped you after all Sai! You still care about my happiness!" She giggled rocking him back and forth.

"Get off me! Do you know how weird this looks? We've already caused a scene before and now you want to cause another one?"

She ignored him and continued to hug him.

"Well, since we're in this position, how about a kiss?" He smiled slyly.

Ino immediately released him, and then shoved him to the floor.

"You ruin our good moments." She said, as she started to walk away from him.

Sai smiled as he watched her walk off.

"She is still as violent as ever."

"Why are you mumbling to yourself? Hurry up and let's go to my dad's. Everyone's waiting for us." She said glancing back at him.

* * *

"Did you know those people from earlier?" Hanabi asked, looking out the window of the limo as they passed the river under the bridge.

"Just some idiotic woman I've had the misfortune of running into. How were the auditions? Did you see anybody that could represent us globally?" Neji asked looking at the different profiles his cousin had given him.

"Nobody really caught my attention. They all seemed to be imitating Sakura Haruno. Let's never host public auditions again, it's ridiculous." Hanabi sighed.

"Hey, Ni-san, there's a party at Tokyo U later. Can I go?" She asked eagerly.

Neji looked away from the profiles, then looked at his cousin sternly. She was pretty, just like her older sister and just as gullible. She was clueless to the dangers of young university students and their wild partying ways.

"N-"

"Please? I've been home schooled all my life and I've never been to a real party! You can even let Lee be my body guard!" She compromised.

"Did that Konohamaru boy contact you again? Do I have to cease your phone?"

She glared at him.

"Why do you assume everything I do has to do with him? Is it normal that I haven't been to a party in my life? I bet if Ten-Ten was here you'd let me go." She mumbled the last sentence under her breath, but Neji heard it.

"What did you just say?"

Hanabi groaned as she crossed her legs and folded her arms. Ever since her father passed away, Neji had taken the role of playing father and Since Hinata had gotten married and was now somebody else's problem, all his attention was focused on her.

"Speaking of which, Ten-Ten One-chan sent me a text; she'll be in town in two weeks. Have you guys made up?" Hanabi asked clueless.

Although he was uncomfortable with the topic, Neji acted as if the subject of his ex-girlfriend, the one who was so ready to give up the single life for, didn't bother him.

In fact, it had been bothering him all day since Hinata brought it up. He had been pondering over what he'd do when she got back. He knew she'd contact him first just to torture him. That evil woman knew how to make his life a living hell.

He didn't mind it though because he loved her. She was the only woman who he ever gave his all too and in turn she took everything he gave her and stomped on it to chase her dreams of becoming a political journalist.

He scowled.

He hated her with a passion and wanted to break her heart like she broke his.

* * *

**_Wow! I didn't expect such a wonderful amount of feedback! Thank you all so much for your awesome reviews and alerts! To show my appreciation, I decided to update again. I'm on Christmas break so I have some time. Hope to hear from you again! Please excuse grammatical errors!_**


	3. Three: A Deal With the Devil's Mistress

_*I can promise things will seem rushed throughout this chapter and the reason is because I want to get to the point instead of beating around the bush. If I don't I'll lose interest in the plot due to school work and other crap, but I don't want that to happen, so I'm just gonna speed it up a bit . Thank you all so much for the amazing reviews!_

* * *

**_Cha__rming & Charmless_**

**_Three – A Deal with the Devil's Mistress: Part 1_**

* * *

_1 week later_

Neji's head pounded in pain as he sluggishly turned over in the bed. Though his eyes weren't open, his mind was along with his brain. He just couldn't bring himself to wake up. Everything was hurting, especially this headache. He groaned in pain as he hid his face in the rather uncomfortable pillow. That was unusual in itself. His pillows were one of the softest made pillows in the world.

"Hey, are you awake yet?"

_Who was that?_ The voice didn't sound familiar to him. Why was this person in his room? Was she his maid? She couldn't be. She would have had better manners. He turned over in the bed again. She shoved him.

"What!" He growled in the pillow. His nose picked up a smell of mango. Mango? Perhaps he had a sexual encounter last night. Couldn't she just take a hint and leave?

"What do you mean what? You're sleeping in my bed like you own it you ass!" She retorted.

Neji's white lavender eyes snapped open immediately. His turned his head painfully to where the noise was coming from.

Lo and behold, it was _that woman._ Why was she every he turned now-a-days?

Her blue eyes stared at him almost amused as one of her blonde eye brows quirked up. Neji studied her and immediately jumped a foot away from her. She was wearing a see through white tank top and shorts.

"Good morning to you too," She said rolling her eyes as she got up from the bed and walked out of the room.

"Woman!" He called her, confused as to what the hell was going on and why was she at his place.

He looked around. This wasn't his house…He didn't remember having posters of different j-pop bands, different posters of runway models, and a giant Audrey Hepburn posters in his room. There was no way in hell this small room could have been his.

What the hell was he doing at her place? He attempted to bolt out of the bed, but his throbbing head didn't allow him.

The woman peaked back in the room at him, as if it was his house and she was shy to be there.

"What the hell is going on?" He asked frustrated. He sat up and then ran his hand through his long hair, sighing.

"You don't remember anything from last night?" She teased as she walked in the room, still undressed according to _Neji's definition_ of dressed anyway.

"Please tell my I didn't have sex with you." He begged.

Her eyes grew as large as saucers, and then she broke out in a big deceiving grin, something her ex-boyfriend had taught her.

"Oh God!" Neji groaned. He had gone and had sex with a stripper, something against his moral standing.

She laughed.

"It's not funny! I know you're happy that you're able to add a classy man to your list of conquers, but this is an embarrassment for me." He shook his head ashamed, almost wanting to take his own life right then and there.

"We didn't have sex you prude," She glared. Even in his situation, he still looked down on her.

Neji actually calmed down a bit, thanking his lucky stars.

"I don't know why we keep running into each other…did you kidnap me?" He asked suspiciously.

"Ha! I said the same thing last night!" She said crossing her arms.

"Last night? What happened last night? And would you put some clothes on?"

She looked down at herself, then walked over to her dresser and grabbed a hoody.

"Well, I was working part time at my new job, and there you were to ruin my night, again, might I add," She began.

* * *

"_I'm so glad you're here Ino! The restaurant is really busy tonight! We needed as much workers as possible." Iruka, a man with brown hair, and a scar over his nose said speedily. He looked as if he really wanted to get back to work._

"_No problem, thanks for letting me work here tonight!" She said excitedly putting on her apron._

_She had been surprised when he called her and offered her a part time job at Kitsune (_A/N:There goes my originality again, haha_), a very high society restaurant. It was in uptown Tokyo, a place where Ino hadn't been to familiar with. It was like going to another country._

"_Don't thank me, Asuma was the one who suggested you." Iruka smiled picking up the tray of drinks that had just been dropped off by one of the cooks._

"_Asuma?" Ino said surprised. She couldn't help but smile. That man actually cared about her enough to recommend her to such an impressive restaurant._

"_Yep, do me a favor and please take this to the first table in the VIP lounge. The people there are very important people, so please treat them very nicely and do as they say. I promise they will be ass holes, but tried to keep a brave face." He begged, handing her the tray of drinks._

"_Y-yes sir!" She said as she headed out. _

_She couldn't mess up today. If she did a good job, Iruka might even offer her a full time job at Kitsune and how lovely would her resume become._

_She confidently walked over to the table where three men were sitting._

"_Sorry for the wait, here are your drinks." She smiled as she passed each of them a drink. Of course none of them thanked her, being rude like Iruka had said._

"_You!" One of them said, causing her to actually look him in the face._

'_Oh God.' Ino taught as her eyes once again caught the eyes of those notorious white lavender colored eyes. The heavens must have it out for her. She smiled though. She couldn't mess up._

"_Y-yes sir?" She whispered, not wanting to praise him as if he deserved him._

"_You sure get around," He smirked. "You lost your job at that other place huh? That manager is a lot smarter than I gave him credit for."_

_Ino continued smiling, a urge to pour the drink on his head taking over her._

"_Neji, you know her?" The dark haired man asked curious. Her blue eyes turned to meet his onyx colored eyes. She almost lost her breath at his handsome face. She became embarrassed when her caught her staring._

"_Yea, she's the rude bartender I told you about Sasuke." Neji smirked._

"_I'm afraid you're mistaken sir." Ino clenched her teeth. He was asking for trouble._

"_Excuse me, could you please bring me filet mignon from the chef? Tell him it's a personal request from Gaara, and he should make it like I like it," The third man, who had been quiet the whole time asked politely._

_He was also handsome._

"_Y-yes sir." Ino said, completely entranced by his red fiery hair and the tattoo above his eye. She left the table, continuously thinking about the trio she had met, minus that jerk. Although she had grown up surrounded by men (Shikamaru, Sai, Chouji, her father, etc.,), she had never been blessed with such a sight. She had seen her share of beautiful men, but these people were different. _

_Entranced, she returned to the table with the special order, and Gaara, as he called himself, thanked her by giving her a large tip. She liked him the best._

"_I bet you that's the highest a client as ever paid her," Neji snarled as he watched her walk off. She heard him though and secretly gave him the bird._

"_So what are you going to do about Ten-Ten?" Gaara asked, returning to their previous conversation._

_Neji groaned at the sound of her name. He really didn't know what to do._

"_I'll just drink my sorrows away." He said, drinking another round of Patron. Sasuke and Gaara chuckled too themselves._

"_I find it ridiculous how you were ready to marry her. She's the only girl you've date seriously and you were ready to give up single life for her. I'm telling you Neji, there's someone else waiting for you out there. This is your fate, isn't that what you said?" Gaara lectured._

"_Look at Gaara, being all Dr. Phil. I didn't know you had it in you." Sasuke teased._

"_This is coming from a guy who's been in a committed relationship for about a year now and claims he's not in love with his girl. Should I be taking advice from you instead Sasuke?" Neji smirked._

"_Fuck off Hyuga." He responded, and then took another sip of his strong liquor._

_

* * *

_

Neji suddenly remember the night, feeling completely abashed. He had drank so much, it was sad and abnormal for him.

"How the hell did I end up here though?" He question, still confused as to why he was in this woman's apartment.

"Well, it was closing time, and your friends left you. You fell asleep at the table." Ino explained.

"That's nonsense. I wouldn't do such an irresponsible thing." Neji interjected. She shrugged, not in the mood to argue.

"I tried waking you up but you were really out of it. I tried to get your phone out of your pocket but I felt too weird touching the likes of you." She shuddered.

Neji glared.

"The likes of me?"

"I finally found it last night in your pocket when I got home, but the battery was dead, so it was useless." She shrugged.

"Wait…so you brought me to your home?" Neji asked puzzled.

"I didn't really have a choice.I couldn't leave you there. Iruka thought we were good friends and drove us to my house even though I tried to explain to him that I didn't know who you were. You were really heavy to drag up the stairs." She cringed, stretching her arms.

Neji looked at her in disbelief.

"I guess you're a sensible human after all." He mumbled.

Ino was about to respond with a rather vulgar response when someone banged on her door.

"Ino! Open the door!"

"Shit!" She cursed. She'd recognize that voice anywhere.

"What? Is it your boyfriend?" Neji smirked.

Ino rolled her eyes.

"What ever you do, don't leave this room or you will regret it." She warned as she left the bedroom.

Ino walked to her front door and opened it. Two figures were standing there, smiling at her like fools.

"Seriously guys, isn't it too early for you to bother me? What do you want?" She asked as they pushed through her front door.

"Is that anyway to greet your cousin Deidara Ino? You should be a little nice. He came all the way over here just to say hello," The red head female said, making herself comfortable in Ino's kitchen.

"Thank you Karin, I feel the same way about how she greeted you. You'd think she'd be happy to see us." Deidara grinned, jumping onto her couch.

"I saw you guys two days ago! Both of you live on the next floor!" She said annoyed.

"Tsk, tsk Ino. I was so worried about you last night. I kept hearing sounds coming from your apartment. Who were you fucking, Shikamaru?" Deidara mentioned, flipping through her TV channels.

"Deidara!" She said completely shocked.

"It's about time." Karin joined in, taking a seat next to the blonde haired male while sipping on hot chocolate.

"I wasn't _fucking_ anybody." Ino said embarrassed.

"You know, I was going to come down and see what was going on, but I didn't want to be a cock blocker." Deidara joked, kicking his foot up on Ino's coffee table.

"Is Shikamaru hiding? He doesn't need to hide now that you guys have done the deed. We're all mature friends, we won't tease." Karin grinned, pushing up her glasses.

"For the last time I didn't sleep with Shikamaru or anyone for that matter!"

Just as Ino finished her sentence, the toilet in her bedroom was flushed. Everyone's attention turned to the room. Karin grinned as she jumped off the couch and ran towards Ino's room. Ino beat her to it as she blocked the door way.

"Come on out Shikamaru, we already know you're in there. You suck at not being obvious." She called over Ino.

"Cut it out Karin!" Ino pleaded embarrassed at her neighbor's behavior.

Deidara didn't help either since he came over and started tickling Ino's sides which made her weak.

She started laughing and fell to the ground.

"S-stop it D-Deidara!" She begged, losing all her strength.

"Ha, still have this silly weakness uh?" Her cousin grinned.

Suddenly, the door of the bathroom opened, and in all his glory, Neji walked out and stared at the scene before him.

A blonde man was sitting on top of the women who Neji had figured out to be 'Ino'. Her name had made him laugh since her attitude did resemble that of a boar's. The two shared the same colored hair, and both pairs of eyes were looking at him in silence. His attention turned to the other female in the room as she gaped at him confused. He glasses were falling off her face.

Nobody said anything until the red haired woman spoke.

"Who the hell are you?"

* * *

**_Hey guys! Thank you again for the quick responses and awesome reviews! It's really nice to hear your thoughts! I also want to apologize for making Neji seem out of character most of the time if not in a comical way. I'm not good at writing a serious guy in a humorous story. Deidara is Ino's cousin. Wow! How did that happen right? Well I figur__ed they both had blonde hair and blue eyes so why not? I couldn't find a female friend for Ino so I used Karin since all the other females in Naruto will come later. This was originally suppose to be a longer chapter but I had to break it into two since I won't be able to write tomorrow. I have to get some sleep since I'm going on a road trip, but I'll be back again! I know the plot seems a little more rushed and there are always time skips, but please don't be annoyed with me! I hope you're still enjoying this story and plan to review this chapter! Please excuse the grammatical errors again! Thanks for reading!_**


	4. Four: A Deal With the Devil's Mistress 2

**_Charming & Charmless_**

**_Four – A Deal with the Devil's Mistress (Part 2)_**

* * *

Neji stared back at the curious eyes that were currently staring at him with interest; one was more of a deadly gaze while the other was one of admiration. Ino on the other hand was staring at the two different parties trying to think of a way to explain her predicament.

"So, how do you know Ino?" Deidara asked, folding his arms and stepping into the role of big brother. Neji glanced at him, then to Ino who had a panicking look on her face.

"I don't know her." He answered calmly. If this was her boyfriend, should he play a game that would lead to a misunderstanding and torture her? He smirked evilly.

"If you don't know her, why were you in her room half naked?" Deidara asked, pointing out the fact that he was only in a tank top and dress pants.

"How about you ask her? She was the one who took my clothes off." He shrugged.

Ino gasped, almost loosing air from her lungs. If she had a drink, she would have either choked on it, or spit it out.

"W-what the hell are you saying! You were sweating in your suit, and you looked uncomfortable so I took it off." She asked chagrin.

"So, have you guys done the whole breakfast after sex thing, because if you haven't I don't mind treating you," Karin smiled, giving Neji a seductive wink. Neji shuddered.

"I'll pass thanks."

"I think it's time for you guys to go. Now." Ino commanded, placing her foot down.

"I'm not done asking him questions!"

"I didn't get his number yet!"

"You can ask him questions later Deidara, and I'll get you his number and you can treat him any time you want Karin, just get out!" She said pulling her cousin's arm in attempt to get him out.

"So there's going to be a second date? Nicee!" Deidara grinned, getting up. "If you hurt her, just know you're asking for trouble. Come on Karin, Kisame is waiting for us."

Karin groaned.

"Why are you in such a rush to see that freak? I'll call you when I get your number." She glared at Deidara, then looked back at Neji and threw him a kilo-watt smile.

Ino led the two out as fast as she could. She walked back into her living room where Neji had been looking around curiously. He couldn't understand how people could live in closet sized homes. He was getting claustrophobic just thinking about it.

"You! What the hell were you trying to say earlier? You actually threw up on your suit so I took it off so you wouldn't have to sleep with it on." She crossed her arms and glared at him.

Neji looked at her.

"Did you wash it?" He asked.

"Do I look like one of your maids?" Ino responded, walking to her kitchen table where she had been engaged in the opportunities section of the news paper, looking for full time job offers.

"Any way, I have to leave this place before I catch something. Where's your house phone?"

"I don't have one."

"Your cell phone?"

Ino shrugged as she sat on her chair.

"I didn't pay my bills, so they cut it off."

Neji couldn't believe she felt no shame saying it as loud as possible.

"What kind of woman are you? How would you family get in contact with you if something happens?"

"Aw, are you worrying about right now? That's cute." She said, not even glancing in his direction. "So, when are you leaving?"

Neji stopped talking. How the hell was he suppose to leave when he didn't know where the hell he was.  
He stood up.

"You're not even going to ask for compensation for letting me sleep in your home? That's abnormal. I thought all you poor people ask for money." He said as he walked over to where his shoes were.

Ino was doing her best to ignore his arrogant comments.

"You read my mind. I was going to tell you to leave it on my kitchen table before you left." She said turning over to the next page of the news paper.

Neji was getting infuriated with her lack of responses and respect. His younger cousin didn't even treat him like that and he was the nicest to her.

"Woman, are you not going to offer to help me? I don't know where the hell I am and since my phone is dead and you don't have a single phone in this house, it's not as if I can just call for help." He glared.

She finally looked at him.

"I'm waiting for you to pull that stick out your ass and ask for help. If you ask properly, I'll help you."

Neji clenched his teeth. There was no way he was going to ask for help from some commoner.

"I'll just figure my way out by myself then. I have to admit though, for someone so poor, your pride is a little bit too much don't you think?"

"It's all I have." She grinned.

He mumbled a few things, put on his shoes, and then made his way out of her apartment. He didn't even ask for his suit jacket back.

Ino grinned as she ran to her window to see where he was going to go. She saw him, standing out like the sore thumb he was, completely confused. She giggled.

"If you weren't such an ass, I would have jumped to help you." She mumbled, smiling down at him.

She knew he'd come back and ask for help.

* * *

"Back already? That was faster than I thought." She smiled, opening her door to Neji who looked like he had been to hell and back. He really_ really_ hated downtown Tokyo now.

"Help me out of this hell hole." He pleaded.

"You could ask a little nicer." She said, letting him back in her apartment.

"_Please _help me get out of this hell hole." He couldn't remember the last time he said please.

"Now we're talking. Stay here! I'm going to throw something on. Don't try anything funny." She warned.

"As if I haven't seen everything already." He mumbled to himself, referring back to the fact she had basically been naked in her shorts and tank top earlier.

Ino gave him the bird as she went in her room to throw something on. Within fifteen minutes she was dressed in a black romper and a blue cardigan, a bag was hanging loosely off her shoulder as she grabbed her keys off the TV.

"I guess poor people don't feel the cold too." Neji added, noting her lack of clothing. He would kill his cousins if they ever wore such things.

Ino ignored him, as she led him out of the apartment.

"Where are we going?" He asked, following her like a lost puppy.

"We're going to the mall, I have some things to pick up, and then you can buy a replacement charger for your phone."

"I also need to change out of these clothes." Neji said, looking down at himself.

* * *

Ino watched annoyed as Neji kept looking at all the shirt brands the store had. She didn't know men could be so picky about a single shirt.

"Look, they're all the same brands. None of them are Gucci or Polo okay? They're just shirts. Now pick one or I'll leave you."

"I'm glad you know your brands and what kind of clothes I wear, but I'm looking for my shirt size. All of these are either small or large and I need a medium." He said.

Ino began to help him look around for his size. She picked one out and placed it on his back to see if it would fit him.

"What about this one?"

"What size is it?"

"Small."

"Then no. I specifically said I wear a medium, are you deaf?"

They started arguing when an old lady walked by and smiled at the two. She caught Ino's attention, causing Ino to ignore Neji who was still lecturing her about how a man must wear the right size of clothing and what not.

"I just wanted to tell you that you two are a very beautiful couple." She smiled approvingly.

Neji and Ino looked at her, then at each other.

"Old woman, you must be mistake—"

"Thank you grandmother. My boyfriend can be so rude sometimes." Ino interjected, grabbing on to Neji's arm as if he was really her boyfriend. She pinched Neji's cheeks causing him to glare her.

"What a respectful young lady. I wish your relationship the best and your marriage even better!" She smiled knowingly, shaking Ino's hand who felt a sharp shock from the touch. The grandma apologized, then waved a goodbye as she walked off.

Neji snatched his arm out of Ino's embrace and glared at her.

"What the hell was that about?"

"Well the poor old lady was so happy to think we were in a relationship together, I didn't want to crush her dreams. You should be a little more respectful to old people." She said looking through the clothes again. "I found a medium!" She grinned, pulling out the medium shirt.

"I'd never be with the likes of you." He said, snatching the shirt from her.

"Right back at ya," She told him as they walked to the cash register together.

"That will be five dollars." The female cashier smiled, too friendly for Ino's comfort. She looked at the price tag of the shirt which clearly read ten dollars.

"The price tag says ten dollars." She pointed out while Neji pulled out his wallet.

"Oh, well the rest is on the house!" She grinned, glancing at Neji.

Neji didn't notice the woman's advances, which made Ino laugh to herself.

"Here you go." He said, placing his premium credit card of the table shamelessly. The woman's eye grew big.

"Are you serious?" Ino asked, shaking her head.

"Well I don't have any bills on me, what do you expect? Is there somewhere I can change into this?" He asked.

"T-there's a bathroom in the back." The woman said, her eyes never leaving the card.

Ino picked up the card, and gave it back to him.

"I'll pay for it." She said, digging in her bag for her wallet.

"Why? I don't need your money," Neji asked, passing his card back to the cashier.

"Will you stop waving your money around? I get it, you're rich." She took the card back from the woman before she could swipe it.

"I'm glad you finally see the light, but there's no way in hell I'm letting you pay for it."

They went back and forth a couple more times and a line had started behind them. The cashier was getting a bit annoyed herself.

"I'll take the cash." She said

Ino smiled in triumph and handed the lady a bill. Neji groaned as he took the shirt and walked to the bathroom.

* * *

After changing into the new shirt and pants he had got, the two walked around the mall until they came to a phone company where Neji could charge his Blackberry. He also used the time to buy different upgrades for his phone, which were pointless to Ino.

"Crap, I have so many messages. My family probably think I got kidnapped." He said, placing the phone to his ears.

"I'll be in that shop over there." Ino told him, but he didn't pay too much attention to her and she walked off.

"_Nii-san, I don't know why you're not picking up your phone. We have a meeting with an German company at twelve today. Please be there on time. " _Hanabi's voice called. He listened to the address that she gave.

"Seriously, why do all these companies want to meet down town?" He asked as dialing his driver's number.

"_Good morning sir,"_

"I'm at a mall downtown and I need you to get me somewhere. Be here no later than fifteen minutes." He ordered, and then hung up before his driver could respond.

He looked around for the woman and found her talking to a man. He walked towards her.

"You're very beautiful, is it possible to take you out on a date?" He grinned at her. Ino was thinking of the best way to reject him. She smiled as she braced herself.

"_Honey_, what are you doing?" Neji joined in, pulling her close to him. Ino stared up at him, surprised as he placed his arm around her shoulder.

"Oh nothing _love of my life_, this vey kind man just asked me out on a date." She smiled playing along.

The man stared at the two, embarrassed.

"Y-you should have told me you had a boyfriend."

"How could I? You just kept going on and on about yourself."

"Excuse me, but my _girlfriend_ and I have places to be." Neji said, dragging Ino away from the blushing man.

The two walked off together, Neji's arm still around Ino's shoulder until she was sure the man was out of sight. She pushed him off.

"You just saved me from breaking someone's heart and then having to deal with their temper tantrums _honey_." She said as they walked towards the mall exit.

"Don't ever call me that again. I was actually trying to ruin your chances of getting an actual date. It seems like I helped you."

When they got outside of the mall, Neji's driver waved.

"Well, he got here faster than I told him to. I guess someone is getting a raise." He mumbled as he waved to the driver.

Ino stared at his limo secretly impressed.

"This is where we part. I'll be honest with you, this wasn't any fun. Let's never meet again." He smiled, as kindly as possible.

"I feel the same way, but wait!" She called pulling him back.

"What? I have a meeting to go to." He said annoyed.

"Aren't you going to offer me a ride? I did help you out in your drunken moment and I also brought you here. The least you can do is offer me a ride back home." She smiled.

Neji looked at her, suspicious of her motives.

"I have a meeting in fifteen minutes. I don't even have time to go home and change and you expect me to give you a ride? How about I just give you cab fare and you use that instead."

Ino glared at him.

"I want to ride in that limo." She said bluntly.

"I figured. If you don't mind following me to my meeting and then waiting for me to be finished with it, then you can—" Before he could finish Ino was already making her way towards his limo.

* * *

"So how did you guys meet again?" Lee asked, staring at the same blonde woman who had went off on Neji at Tokyo Bar a few days back.

"He was drunk and didn't have a place to stay so I offered my home." Ino said, looking around the limo, excitedly.

Lee had been waiting for Neji in the car.

"R-really?" He asked shocked.

"Don't mention it to anyone." Neji said, as the car pulled up to the front of a building.

"Y-yes sir." He said as the all stepped out of the car. Ino looked around. She had never been to this part of down town Tokyo. It was really nice and almost looked like a miniature version of New York City. She had to crank her neck all the way back to see the sky scrapers.

"Lee, please compensate her for letting me stay at her place, then send her back home." Neji said, getting into business mode.

"I don't even get a bye or a thank you?" Ino said offended.

"Would you rather that than compensation?" Neji glared as he began to walk away.

"I'll take the compensation instead." Ino smiled.

Lee chuckled as he led Ino into the building.

"He must have really been drunk if he actually stayed at your place. Was he a pain in the ass?" Lee asked.

"What do you think? I feel bad that you even have to work for him." She answered as she looked around the building.

It was humongous and very spacious. The only type of people who were walking around were business people dressed in suits and carrying brief case. Ino felt out of place in her outfit, but was amazed none the less.

"What does he do?" She asked, wondering how much power such a man could have.

"His family runs a stock exchange and different businesses that are all successful. You've probably figured out by now that he's a very powerful person." Lee said, as he led her into an elevator where different people were chatting busily on their cell phones.

"Wow." She whispered. "No wonder he's such an ass."

The two left the elevator when they got to the twenty-fifth floor.

"Is this is office?"

"No. This is just a branch of our company where we have all the meetings since uptown Tokyo is busier. There's just more space down here."

"So, who is he meeting today?" She asked curiously. Lee looked at her raising an eye brow.

"I'm just curious!" She grinned, defending herself.

"Well he's meeting a German company today. They're trying to find out if his clothing company has a face so they can introduce her, but we're having a hard time finding a model who meets all the qualification." Lee explained.

"Oh."

The two finally stopped at an office and talked a bit more. Ino found that even though he was a bit too eager for her, Lee was actually kind of cool.

"Here's your compensation. Thank you for taking care of him. I hope you can find you way back. I have to go now." He bowed, and then took his leave.

Ino waved bye to him and then looked at the check he had written her. She was sure something was wrong with her eye sight when she saw the compensation.

"Wow, this is way more than I need. I won't have to pay my rent for the next three months." She grinned as she started walking towards the elevator. On her way to the lobby she started thinking. This guy was really rich. He probably had so a lot of people working for him.

A light bulb went off in her head.

* * *

Neji sighed, tiredly as he got out of the elevator. That meeting had gone longer than he planned and he had been a little embarrassed since he was the only under dressed person there. All he wanted to do was go home and sleep.

His plan was ruined when a certain blonde popped up.

"Why are you still here?" He asked.

"Neji! My good friend!" She grinned as she patted his shoulder.

"What do you want?"

"Nothing! Why would I want anything? I'm just feeling so grateful for this compensation, I wanted to treat you." Ino said trying to keep up with him.

"As tempting as that sounds, I don't feel like it." He said sarcastically.

"Then let's talk instead! I'll just talk to you as you walk to your limo."

"No thanks, I'm tired of hearing people talk." He shut her down.

She groaned.

"Okay, just give me a minute of your time. I have a request." She pleaded.

Neji stopped.

"I already gave you money, what else could you want?" He asked annoyed.

"I need a job."

Neji stared at her, and then broke out into a laugh.

"You're joking right?"

Ino pouted.

"I'm being serious. You're this very important guy who has seen my living conditions. As nice as this compensation is, it won't last forever and I need something that will."

He looked at her serious face. He couldn't believe it was the same woman who was being a smart ass to him earlier. It was kind of pitiful.

He placed both of his hands on her shoulders and looked her straight in the eye.

"Where was that pride you were boasting about earlier? Are you not ashamed of yourself? I compensate you and I thought you'd be grateful but you're here still begging me for more. Don't you think that's too much?"

"As much as I'd love to help you, I cant. Why don't you invest some of that money into my stock exchange? Who knows, maybe you'll get lucky." He said in a brusque manner. He patted her shoulder and turned to walk away, leaving Ino completely shocked.

He was surprised she had enough confidence to ask for such a stupid thing. Poor people had no shame. He was about to exit the building when someone called his name. He groaned, hoping that woman wasn't planning on begging him.

He was about to put her down even more when he realized that it wasn't that woman. It was someone worse.

Ten-Ten.

* * *

Neji stared at her, a bit surprised to see her there.

"I knew it was you!" She smiled as she walked over to him.

She looked completely different from what she had looked like two years ago. The tomboy journalist he remembered was no more. In front of him was a woman who was actually wearing heels and a dress. And _make up_. The tomboy he remembered was something of the past.

He didn't know what to say.

"W-what are you doing here?" He finally mustered up. He was doing his best not to sound angry. No matter how amazing she looked, this was the same woman who left him with a broken heart.

She smiled.

"I came to see you! I really missed my best friend. You didn't even call me while I was away. Did you know how lonely I felt? Would it be okay if I hugged you?" She asked.

Neji didn't know what to say, so she took that as a yes. Her citrus scent had changed into something more expensive. She smelled like Chanel. He couldn't bring himself to respond back to the hug. So many things were going on in his head.

"Won't you say something?" She asked shaking him in a joking manner.

He pushed her off gently.

"Why are you back? I thought you weren't coming back until next week."

"If I knew you were still mad at me about before maybe I wouldn't have come back. I really missed you. Can't we just get over what happened last time?" She frowned.

"I'm over what happened last time. You can't just show up at my work place without giving me a heads up. We're not that close anymore." His tone was rather deadly now. Anyone can sense he was mad at her.

"What are you saying? You're like a brother to me. You can't just cut me off like that." She smiled sadly. She almost looked like she was about to cry.

"I didn't know you were the type to date your siblings and then leave them." He glared.

"Why are you bringing that up? It's been two years. I've moved on Neji."

"You're bolder than I remember." He told her, doing his best to not yell at her.

"Can't you be happy for me?" She asked him.

"You want me to be happy for you? Tell me Ten-Ten, what did I ever do to you to make me look this pitiful? You seem to have forgotten everything you have today is because of me. Now you're so high up there you want to shove everything back into my face huh?"

She opened her mouth to respond, but he turned his back to her.

"I can't even look at you."

"Fine, you don't have to look at me, but you can't avoid me either. You forgot we have the same friends. Every where you go I'll be there. You're still the same. I really hope you learn to let go of the past Neji."

Their conversation ended there and she walked away leaving him to dwell in what had just taken place. He didn't know what to do with himself.

* * *

When he walked outside, Ino was standing there staring at the pavement. She seemed lost and a little sad. Neji shoved his hands in the pocket of the pants.

"You're still here?" He said, walking up to her.

"I'm leaving you grounds soon your majesty." She bowed rather angrily.

Neji couldn't figure out why they atmosphere felt tense. She seemed different from before. He sighed.

He was really hungry, but didn't want to eat by himself. If he did, his thoughts would consume him and he'd do something he'd regret.

"I'm hungry." He announced.

She didn't say anything in return, which annoyed him.

"I'm talking to you, the least you can do is say something degrading back." He ordered, grabbing her shoulder.

She glared at him full force.

"What do you want from me? Aren't you the one who said I'm shameless? Why are you talking to me! Can't you take a hint that I really can't stand you right now?"

Neji flinched.

"You have a temper that's abnormal for a woman." He noted nonchalantly which drove Ino crazy.

"I really want to choke you right now." She warned.

"Save that energy for eating." He said as a called a cab over.

A cab instantly came over and he opened the door and motioned for her to get in.

"No." She said folding her arms.

"No?"

"No."

"Would you say yes if I suggested we take the limo?"

"I don't want to go anywhere with you. I remember you saying 'let's never meet again'." She said, mocking him.

* * *

Neji stared at her and she stared at him back.

"Are you going to eat?" He asked her.

"What is your real motive? Did you suddenly find me attractive enough to take me on a date?" She grinned.

Neji smirked.

"Is that what you were wishing for the whole time? I'd take you on a date, fall in love with you somehow and then we'd get married and live happily ever after? I should have known you'd be attracted to me. All women are attracted to men with power." He noted.

"Do you ever stop being arrogant? I just want to know why one minute you tell me to get lost and then the next minute you're asking me to eat lunch with you. If anyone is interested in anyone it's you."

"Sorry, you're not my type. I just didn't want to eat alone, that's all."

"Can I please take your order?" The waiter asked politely.

"Can I please get a low fat strawberry milk shake?" She asked, smiling.

"Yes ma'am. What can I get for you sir?"

"I'll have tea." He said. The waiter nodded as he excused himself.

"Tea? You're hungry and all you're going to drink is tea? How old are you, 50?" Ino asked surprised.

"What about you? I was expecting you to order the whole menu since this is probably the best meal you've ever eaten but all you order is a milkshake. You better enjoy all this food while I'm being nice."

Ino rolled her eyes.

"I have to maintain my weight. All this food is just going to go right into my hips." She said, crossing her legs.

Neji casually glanced at her legs, surprised at how well maintained they were. He'd never tell her that though.

While the waiter came to give them their orders, Neji's phone rang.

"_Nii-San! Where have you been? Did you go to the meeting?"_ Hanabi's voice asked.

"Why wouldn't I go?"

"_Good. Did everything go okay? What did they say?"_

"I'm not in a place where I can talk about what happened in the meeting." Neji said, glancing at Ino who was happily drinking her milkshake.

"_Oh, I see. By the way, your suit arrived. They sent it to the family house but I told them to send it to your house instead."_

"What suit?"

"_The suit you are wearing to the Uchiha Annual Party. You can't back down now; there are already reservations for our family."_

"Crap, I completely forgot." He cursed.

"_Nii-san, don't get mad but Ten-Ten One-san is back and she's going to be there at the party tomorrow."_

Neji didn't respond for a few seconds.

"_Nii-san?"_

"Why would I be mad?"

"_Well, it's just that she's bringing a date. I don't want you to look pitiful tomorrow when you see her with him."_

"Gee, thanks for the kind words. I'm not going to look pitiful because I have a date too." He blurted out.

"_Really? Who?" _

"You'll meet her tomorrow."

"_Well since we're talking about dates, can I bring a date?"_

"Sure, as long as it's a girl or a group of friends that are all girls. I don't see why not."

"_Nii-san!"_

"I'll see you tomorrow." He said hanging up the phone.

"Who was that?" Ino asked, finishing her milkshake.

"My cousin."

"Why won't you let her bring a guy date?"

"Why were you eavesdropping?" Neji counter attacked.

He sighed as he drank his tea. Where the hell was he going to get a date? He knew how awkward it would be if he'd showed up at the party without a date and Ten-Ten would be hanging on to some guy. Everyone would feel sorry for him, and he'd a hate that.

"Well, it was nice spending your money, but I have to go meet my dad." Ino said, suddenly interrupting his thoughts as she stood up to go. He stared at her and then it finally hit him.

"Ino, right?" He asked.

She nodded.

"What are you doing tomorrow night?" He asked which caused her to look at him suspiciously.

"It depends. If I get called to work, I'll be working…why?" She asked.

"Do you want to go on a date with me?" He asked seriously. The two stared at each other, until she started laughing.

"That is the funniest thing I've ever heard. I think they put something in your tea." She grinned, looking at his tea.

Neji rolled his eyes.

"I wasn't trying to be funny."

"Now I'm sure they did put something in your tea." She said seriously. "Listen, as tempting as a date sounds with a rich guy as yourself, I already know it's not going to be enjoyable."

"Don't get so excited yourself. It's not an actual date. I just need someone to flaunt around tomorrow night."

"I'm honored you think I'm worthy to be flaunted, but I'm still not interested. I hope you figure it out." She said getting ready to leave.

"Okay, fine. How about I make a deal with you? If you do me this one favor, I'll personally look for a job in one of my departments for you."

Ino stopped in her foot track.

"What?" She asked surprised.

"You heard me; I'll get you a job."

"So you're telling me, if I pretend to be your date for one night, you'll get me a job in your company? Are you lying?" She asked.

"Nope, I'm a Hyuga and I keep my promises. Do you need it in writing?" He asked looking around for a paper.

"I believe you for some strange reason. It's just for one night right?" She asked.

"Do you think I like hanging out with you? After tomorrow night, I hope to never see you again, even with you working in my company." He nodded.

Ino grinned.

"I like the way you think Hyuga. You got yourself a deal." She grinned.

* * *

_**Hey guys! Happy Christmas Eve! I hope you guys like this chapter because I kinda don't like it, haha. It took a long time to write. Please excuse the grammatical errors and what not. I'm sorry if Neji seems out of character. By the way, Karin and Deidara are not dating and yes, Sasuke's girlfriend is Sakura. I know you hate it, and so do I but I think it will benefit this story. Shikamaru will start showing up more frequently next chapter. I may have forgotten something, but Thank you all for your reviews! I really love hearing from you and I hope to continue hearing from you!**_


	5. Five: Cinderella Complex

_**Charming && Charmless**_

_**Five-Cinderella Complex**_

* * *

After exchanging numbers, Ino went to get her phone turned back on and then to the bank to actually invest a third of the money she had received in compensation into a stock like Neji had advice her. She figured since he was one of the richest people in Tokyo, he must know what he was talking about when it came to money.

After paying other bills she owed, she skipped happily to the spot where she usually hung out with her friends.

"Where have you been?" Chouji asked as she walked into the apartment.

She grinned as she walked him, handing him some premium beef and gave him a hug. Chouji looked in the bag and then back at her surprised.

"Ino, where did you get money to buy this type of meat?" He asked following her into the living room where Sai, Shikamaru, Karin, and Deidara were watching the game on the television.

"I think my luck is changing Chouji. I think I'm going to get really lucky soon." She grinned skipping over to hug everyone which annoyed most of them since it was taking away from their game. Ino smiled at Shikamaru who made space for her beside his seat on the carpet.

"Oh she's getting lucky alright; in fact she got lucky last night with a very beautiful man." Karin blurted nudging Deidara who grinned and finally decided to acknowledge his cousin.

Ino lost all the color on her face.

"W-what did you just say?" She asked, giving Karin a deadly glare.

"It's true. Let me tell you guys what happened," Deidara started when the game everyone had been engaged in went to half time. Everyone's attention turned to Deidara who was getting into story mode.

"Last night, I was in my apartment painting my new masterpiece when I hear someone grunting from below my apartment. I mean these two were making all kind of noise and I almost went to check it out until I hear my cousin's voice and another man's voice. I got the hint so I just let them be. They were at it all nigh—"

"Oh my God!" Ino said covering her face completely embarrassed. "For the last time we were not having sex!"

"Sure sounded like it." Deidara grinned turning his attention back to the television.

"I mean this guy looked like he was loaded—"

"Karin!" Ino called abashed.

"Don't be ashamed Ino, we're all good friends here right Shikamaru?" The red headed woman taunted. Shikamaru nodded robotically. He had only been half-listening.

"I swear we didn't have sex!" Ino said trying to convince everyone around her especially Shikamaru.

"So after you guys had sex he took you out to eat and bought you premium beef? I approve of him!" Chouji joined as he walked into the kitchen with the meat.

"Chouji!" Ino called surprised that he had easily accepted the fact she had sex when she didn't! She turned over to Sai who gave her an amusing smile.

"Sai! You believe me right? You know I'm not that type of girl right?" She asked him, begging him almost to defend her image in front of the guy she secretly had a crush on.

"Ino, there's nothing to be ashamed off. I mean I don't blame the guy, you are very beautiful. I'd kill to bang you again if I could." He winked at her, and then turned back to the television waiting for her retaliation.

"Keep your desires to yourself." Deidara warned Sai, his eyes not leaving the television.

"You're not serious! I was having good day and you two had to ruin it!" She said glaring at both Deidara and Karin whose attentions were back on the game.

Nobody said anything to her, not even Shikamaru. She sat beside him pouting, hoping he wasn't thinking the worst of him.

"When are we going to meet this guy?" Shikamaru finally smirked, ruffling her hair in a teasing way.

"You believe them too, Shika?" She asked hiding her face from him. His lack of response gave her the answer she needed. She was really going to have to kill Karin and Deidara later.

* * *

"Deidara give me my phone!" Ino groaned at her cousin's childish behavior as she tried her best to get it back from him.

"Monkey in the middle!" Deidara grinned as he threw the phone to Sai who had ran up ahead of the two earlier.

Every one was on their way home after a night of drinking when Ino had received a text from Neji.

"Tomorrow morning, I want to bang you!" Sai shouted drunkenly as he read what he thought the text message had said. Ino ran up to him to take it from him, but instead of fighting with her, he embraced her, chuckling like mad.

"Ino, I want to bang you too!" He said burying his face into her neck. He forced her into an embrace which was hard to get out of or get her phone. She shoved him, and when that didn't work she gave him a good kick in the shins.

"Sai!" She called annoyed.

Sai stopped for a moment and looked at her pouty lips, then grinned.

"Okaay! Okay! I'll give it back to you if you give me a kiss." He said, pointing to his lips.

Ino frowned, almost as if she were about to cry. Sai stopped again for a moment, feeling really bad. He waved for her to come to him and when she dragged herself closer he placed his arm around her. Right when Ino was about to reach for he phone, Sai threw it back at Deidara who was annoying the hell out of Karin and Shikamaru.

"Don't cry pretty woman." Sai said softly brushing Ino's hair with his fingers.

"He texted again! 'Why aren't you responding to me my love'?" Deidara grinned waving the phone in Karin face. She was trying her best not to break his arm.

"Cut it out already!" Karin yelled at the blonde male who was now dancing as Ino was chasing after him.

Shikamaru sighed. He had been watching the whole thing quietly, just trying to get a good smoke, but the two idiots were annoying the hell out of everybody. Normally, Sai only acted like an idiot when he was drunk, but no one could really tell the difference when Deidara was drunk. He was born high on life.

"Make me!"

"Yah, Deidara, I was at the art store the other day and I got into an argument with the sales man. He was telling me how Da Vinci was a much better artist than Michelangelo and I told him no way that, Raphael is better than the two combined." Shikamaru said, pulling the cigarette out his mouth and blowing out the smoke.

Deidara had actually stopped dancing and gave his undivided attention to Shikamaru.

"Yah, Shikamaru, how many times must I tell you, Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael come no where near Picasso? You should have shut the guy by telling him about Picasso. Every artist know Picasso is the real scientist here, as much as I respect Michelangelo."

"No way, even though those four are the most recognizable names in art people always forget to mention Bellini. He was a true artist." Sai joined in.

While the two began arguing about the greatest artist, Shikamaru slickly grabbed Ino's cellphone. He knew conversations about art and what not always got the two riled up and oblivious to their surroundings.

He walked up to Ino who had given up earlier and was angrily kicking a rock around.

"Wow, he must really be someone special if you're getting angry about it. Here." He said, handing her the phone.

She looked back at him gratefully.

"He's my new boss. They keep saying I slept with him because I let him stay over at my apartment after he got drunk last night, but that's not true!" She said, examining the gadget.

"Ugh! They broke the strap you gave me for my birthday!" She whined, trying to put the trinket back together.

Shikamaru looked at it, and then took it from her, his cold hands brushed against Ino, giving her a chill. He looked at her.

"Are you cold?"

"Your hands are cold." She explained.

"No they're not. I told you that should start dressing appropriately. You're going to get sick, and I don't want to have to make you soup ever again." He said, taking off his jacket and placing it around her. Before she could object, he turned his attention back to her phone strap and tied it together the best he could.

"I'll get you another one." He said, almost handing it to her when her phone vibrated in his hands.

"Here." He said handing her the phone. She looked down at the phone curiously until she realized who it was.

"Hello?" She said.

"Woman, you don't know how to pick up your phone?" Neji's voice immediately hit her ear.

"It's so good to hear from you too!" She smiled forcefully at Shikamaru. She really didn't want him to hear the conversation. She covered the speaker to the phone and looked at him.

"I'm going to my dad's. I'll see you later." She waved.

Shikamaru looked at her run off quickly, and then looked back at Sai, Karin, and Deidara who were still arguing about art.

"I'm going to go with Ino." He announced to Karin.

Karin gasped.

"Don't leave me with these idiots! How the hell is Sai going to get home?" She yelled at him.

"Let him stay at Deidara's." Shikamaru answered, and then ran to the street where Ino was currently crossing.

"Shikamaru!" Karin's voice echoed through the night.

* * *

"Listen asshole, I'm doing this as a favor to you, being polite won't kill you!" Ino paused as she waited for his response. She had only been on the phone with him for ten minutes and she already felt the need to strangle him.

"_You'd think you'd have enough common sense to give me respect since you will be working for me from now on but you're still as rude as ever. Maybe you don't want this job as bad as you begged for it."_

Ino gasped.

"Fine! Maybe you don't need a date as bad as you begged for it!"

"_Listen, I can easily get anyone to replace you. You need me more than I need you. I suggest you follow along instead of arguing with me."_

Ino thought about it and realized it was true.

"Yes _sir,_" She said, hoping he heard the sarcasm in her voice.

"_Tomorrow I will send someone to come pick you up so you can look presentable. Don't argue with them, they know what they're doing." _

"Wait, you're going to send someone to come pick me up _at my house_?"

"_Where else?"_

"I'm staying at my dad's tonight, how's that going to work?"

"_Just give me the address to your father's home."_

After debating a few minutes more she gave her him her father's address and bid him goodbye. She sighed as she wondered what she was getting herself into.

"You have a date tomorrow?" Shikamaru's voice startled her causing her to scream and made her heart jump.

"Shikamaru! Don't sneak up on me like that!" She pleaded shoving him.

"Well I've been following you for almost fifteen minutes. I figured you already knew I was following you." He shrugged scratching his head.

"Oh. Well that was really creepy." She smiled at him, walking beside him.

"Who's the guy?"

"Huh?"

"Who's the guy you have a date with tomorrow?"

Ino looked at him still a bit confused. She finally caught on that he had heard her conversation.

"It's not really a date. I'm doing him a favor since he can't get a date on his own. He had to beg me for one." She giggled nervously, hoping the questions would stop there.

"Are you spending the night at my dad's?" She asked as they walked to they stopped at the little house Ino had grown up in.

"Probably. My job's not to far from here, I'd just have to borrow some clothes from your dad."

"Yay!" Ino clapped like a little girl.

When they were younger, Ino, Shikamaru, and Chouji would constantly spend nights at each other's house. Their families were always close so no one felt embarrassed about having anyone over. In fact, their parents thought of each of them as their own kids so things were never awkward. They stopped doing it they got into high school simply because Ino was growing into a full fledged woman. She missed the days of sleep overs though.

They walked into the house where Inoichi was watching the news on television.

"Dad, I'm home." Ino said walking into the kitchen while Shikamaru walked towards Inoichi.

"Shikamaru, it's been a long while." He grinned at the man beside him.

"You're telling me. I see grey hair on you head." Shikamaru teased.

"You're still a smart ass I see. Where's Chouji?"

"We just came from his apartment. He has to work tonight so we left him alone." Ino said quickly trying to make something for he father to eat. She settled on Ramen.

"Thanks love," Inoichi said as Ino placed the Ramen in front of him. She went to sit down next to Shikamaru who had been engaged in the news.

"The stocks having been going up and down at my job lately. They've been on my ass to do something about it as if I'm the only one who works there."

"I know how you feel. Business isn't going that great at the flower shop either. You know what's ridiculous though? It's like that Hyuga franchise never suffers from any kind of loss." Inoichi said pointing at the television.

Ino's eyes grew wide when she saw Neji's face on the television. He had been wearing a suit like a business man and seemed very professional. She knew he was powerful, but not so powerful that the whole of Japan knew it.

"Lately stocks have been going up and down but with the hard working team of companies, we're confident in our stocks and not too worried about competition. Our motto is quality and not quantity. We put a big emphasis on that because that's what most of these other companies are lacking."

Ino watched him. She never realized how eloquent he could be. It was like she was looking at a different person, and not the person who she had been running into these last couple of weeks.

* * *

When Ino woke up, Shikamaru had left to work and so had her dad. She quickly got ready since she was going to have a busy day. After bathing and cleaning up she searched her old room for clothes to wear. She was lucky she could still fit in her clothes from high school. She was satisfied when she found navy and cream colored V-neck dress. She grabbed some knee length socks and the oxfords she had came in and put them all on.

By the time she was done, she received a phone call from Neji's driver and quickly ran out to meet him.

"Mr. Hyuga requested we cut off some of your hair." The hair dresser said feeling around Ino's hair that she had been growing since forever.

"What?" She asked, jumping up from the chair. She had been dragged around all day by one of Neji's female assistant and she was having fun being Cinderella and going through the whole Cinderella complex and what not, but there was no way in hell was she going to cut her hair. No Way.

"He said we shouldn't let you leave until you cut off at least five inches." The woman continued on talking while Ino was shaking her head uncontrollably.

"No. !" She repeated over and over again.

"Madame, I agree you have one of the most well taken cared of hair that I've ever treated, the second only to Mr. Hyuga to himself. As gorgeous as it is, it's uncontrollably long and needs to be tamed. Trust me and I won't let you down." She spoke soothingly to Ino.

"I appreciate the compliment but there are three things about myself that I cherish more than life itself and the most important is my hair." She said trying to escape.

"You're more stubborn than I thought." The hair dresser grinned folding her arms evilly.

Ino sobbed as she felt her hair being cut off with the evil hands of the scissors. She would kill that jerk when she saw him.

* * *

"Please wait here madam. I'll go get Mr. Hyuga."

Ino nodded at the man who had brought her to the hall. She watched as he left then looked around her surroundings. It was everything like Ino had seen in the movies. The dinning hall reminded her of her favorite movie Beauty and The Beast, where Belle danced with the Beast. The ceiling itself was covered with what Ino thought was a remake of the Sistine chapel.

She smiled to herself. She knew if either Deidara or Sai heard her say that aloud they would have probably disowned her.

Aside from the beautiful building, Ino was more amazed with the people that kept walking by her. They all seemed so amazing with their ballroom gowns and dresses. It was like she was the daughter of someone very important and she had gotten the chance to be featured a diner party.

She was lost in her thoughts for a moment until someone tapped her shoulders. Her blue eyes were met by kind chestnut colored eyes.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but you look absolutely beautiful." The woman said smiling at Ino.

"T-thank you," Ino said, taken back also by her beauty. She was wearing a red elegant one shoulder dress and was as long as Ino's and reached the. The shoulder of the dress was designed with what Ino thought was bedazzled, but she knew better. These people were rich and she would put it past this woman to actually wear a dress made out of jewels. Her hair and make up were also perfect and it made her look even more gracious. She seemed to be the epitome of what a woman in this type of society.

"I'm Ten-Ten by the way." She said, feeling rude for not even introducing herself. "I've been to this annual parties a billion times and I know almost everyone here, it's good to see someone new that doesn't have generic beauty. It gets tiring always having to look at woman with plastic faces every year." She whispered, smiling at Ino as if it was their own little joke.

Ino liked this woman.

"Every one looks amazing!" Ino said, looking around again. "I'm kind of new to these things. My name is Ino by the way!"

"It's a pleasure meeting you. Make sure you don't ruin that amazing dress! You'll have to give me the name of your designer!" Ten-Ten smiled as her cell phone vibrated.

"I'll let you know when I find out." Ino promised.

"Have an amazing night Ino. Someone is waiting for me inside. Next time, tell your date not to make you wait by yourself outside; if he's not careful someone else will snatch her." Ten-Ten winked as she walked away, referring to all the men who had been glancing at Ino.

Ino smiled as she watched Ten-Ten leave. She couldn't help but feel happy. She had secretly felt out of place when she stepped into the hall. Sure, she looked as grand as everyone else did but she knew she was a fake. She wasn't one of them. By the end of the night she'd have to return the dress and go back to looking around town of different jobs.

The kind compliments Ten-Ten had given her made her feel better. She was never the type of girl to have doubts about her look. She knew she was beautiful, but among these people she felt below average. She nervously hugged her shoulders as she felt a cold shiver from the night.

The silver strapless mermaid dress that the woman at the dress store chosen for her was beyond beautiful and brought out Ino's curve perfectly but as beautiful as it was, she was cold in it. Her bare back and the area around her cleavage were bare. She didn't understand why a dress that took so many hours to get in (actually thirty minutes) wasn't worth the time since she was cold in it. All the extra layers should have kept her warm.

Ino sighed brushing her falling bangs out of her face. Her hair…she missed her hair. The hair dresser had cut it to the bottom half of her spine compared to her older length which was up to the back of her knees. Ino had spent so much time growing it out. She couldn't believe her hard work of twenty five years had been cut off in fifteen minutes.

She couldn't complain though. She secretly like the new look. Ino never did anything more than just put her hair in a pony tail. On good days she'd leave it wet and let it free, but that was rarely. The woman had curled her new hair and had done the side chignon hair style for her.

"Sorry for making you wait ma'am." The kind gentlemen that had brought her in ran towards her.

"It's okay." She smiled.

"Mr. Hyuga requested I escort you to the stair case and he would meet you there."

Ino nodded as she took his arm and he led her away.

* * *

Neji sighed nervously. He hated when he was nervous. He didn't even have a legit reason to be nervous. So what if he hired some random woman that he hated to pretend to be his date just so he could fool Ten-Ten for the night? So what if the woman might behave like an idiot and embarrassed him in front of his collogues.

Nah, he wasn't nervous. What could possibly go wrong?

He watched as the man in front of him left to the stair case to be introduced to the people of the party. Neji didn't understand why people had to be introduced. Sure, it was an honor to be considered on of the most important people at a party, but why did everybody have to watch him walk down a stair case with some woman?

"Introducing, one of the youngest business moguls in all of Japan, none other than Mr. Neji Hyuga and his beautiful date Ino Yamanaka."

Neji walked from behind the curtain into the view of everyone, bowing his head to the applauding crowd beneath him. He then watched as his date walked out from behind the curtain.

For a moment, he didn't recognize the beautiful woman who had walked towards him. When she reached him, bowed at him, then looked at the hundreds of people below are who were taken back by her beauty and bowed to them.

It wasn't until she looked back up at him with her ridiculously blue eyes and big grin that Neji recognize her as the foul woman he had hired to be his date.

* * *

_**Hello everyone! Thank you all for your awesome reviews like always. I'm sorry this took longer than usual to post up but that was because of the holidays . Hope everyone had a great Christmas and got what you wanted! **_

_**IMPORTANT!: I just want to let you guys know I will not be updating as frequently as I do now when school starts again next week. I'll try my best to update either friday evening or saturday morning. If I don't update for a whole month or more during this time, PLEASE CONTACT ME. If I'm too busy will school work you probably won't get an update for a while so please send me a private message to remind me to update. Also if you want to see the dress Ino wore I'll try to leave a link on my page but if I forget just go to simply dresses dot com and look at the ball gown section for a strapless mermaid dress. Ino's hair style was inspired by Taylor Swift and you can just google side chignon.  
**_

_**Finally, don't be surprise if this chapter has a lot of screw ups and grammar mistakes. I wanted to update as soon as possible because I felt bad for taking so long so I didn't do much of editing besides spell check. Hope to hear from you soon!**_


	6. Six: Deceiving People

_**Charming & Charmless**_

_**Six- Deceiving People**_

* * *

"You look presentable." Neji noted as Ino took his arm gracefully and walked down the spiral stair case cautiously.

With a big grin on her face, Ino, turned slightly to Neji and gave him a glare only he would recognize behind her dazzling blue eyes and her pearly smile.

"You dick, after this whole shenanigan, I will personally kill you and make you scream in pain for forcing me to cut my hair." She gritted through her teeth.

"Now, now, Yamanaka, this isn't your house. Your mouth should be cleaner than that." Neji taunted.

"You're unbelievable!" She said to him.

"Listen, the only reason I needed you as a date is-"

"Are you trying to make someone jealous? I figured that was the case, so you decided to bring this beautiful woman to make her jealous and see that you can do a lot better than she gives you credit for. Am I right?" Ino asked, looking at him.

"If you don't look where you're going, you're going to fall." Neji said, as they stepped down on the last stair case and the crowd before them spread so they could walk to their table. Some of the women whispered in awe since they had never seen Ino and her beautiful dress before. Other women glared in jealously, but Ino was too oblivious to notice.

"Am I right though? Who is she?"

"You'll meet her soon enough and for the love of God, this is the last time I'll ever beg you for anything, so please try to act presentable," Neji said, stopping, which surprised Ino as she stopped to look at him.

"What are you talking about? I always act presentable!"

"Really? Does '_Do you still have the stick far up your ass? Should I come pull it out for you_? ' sound presentable? Or maybe '_you dick, after this whole shenanigan, I will personally kill you_'" Neji said mimicking her words.

Ino smiled widely.

"Wow, I'm impressed Neji! You keep account of our conversations and then play them over in your head. Is that how you charm you woman?" She teased giving him a wink.

Neji sighed.

"If you embarrass me tonight, I will make your life a living hell." He threatened.

"I should tell you a secret; I personally do things that tick people off just to push their buttons." She whispered.

"Moron." Neji said as he brushed her bangs out of her eyes. Ino flinched completely surprised by the touch of his fingers to her hair. It made her shiver, not because his hands were cold, but because it tickled. She felt embarrassed, especially with all the curious eyes watching them.

"W-what are you doing?" She stuttered, pushing his hand away.

"Try to put on a good show, my friends are coming." He said as they watched three people approach them.

"Neji!" A man in a black suit walked up to them excitedly. His hair was messy brown and made it look like he just got out of bed. He had two tattoos on his face which were strangely a whine color. Ino felt like she knew he was. He was taller than Ino, but shorter than Neji.

"Must you always be so energetic when you approach me Kiba? If I didn't know you, I'd assume you were gay." Neji smirked, causing the once smiling man to suddenly glare.

Ino couldn't help but giggle behind Neji. Apparently he was a jerk to everyone, even his own friends.

"Don't start with me tonight Hyuga." Kiba said as the other people who had been walking behind him walked up to them.

"Ni-san, what took you so long to get here?" A familiar voice asked. Ino peaked at the woman who looked like a replicate of Neji. Ino remembered her as the young woman who had been with Neji at the mall the other day when they had their altercation. Ino was convinced she was perhaps his twin sister.

"Where's your date?" She asked looking for Ino who had hid behind Neji's tall stature.

"Yeah, where is she? I was wondering who she was when I saw you walk her down the stair case. Is she a foreigner?" The third person said grinning, placing a firm hand on Hanabi's head.

Ino studied the tall man who seemed a bit older than Neji. He had short but spiky dark indigo hair compared to Hanabi and Neji's dark brown hair but his eye color was the same as theirs, so it'd only make sense that they were related.

"What's Ko doing here?" Neji asked nodding to the man who Hanabi was glaring at annoyed as she fixed her hair.

"He just showed up out of nowhere." Hanabi shrugged.

"We'll talk later, but you should really answer my question. Maybe I'll be getting lucky tonight if you introduce us." Ko chuckled, tugging on Neji's sleeve to annoy him.

Ino hid more behind Neji, hoping the man didn't see her.

"Old man!" Neji said annoyed as he brushed of his suit.

"Can we sit down already?" Hanabi said, uninterested in the situation at hand, leaving the group to go sit at their assigned table.

"We should go sit down," Ko yawned.

"You're more shameless than I remember old man." Kiba shook his head as he followed Ko.

Ino suddenly burst out into laughter as she came from behind Neji.

"What's so funny? And would you stop laughing like a cow? I can see your whole mouth, how unladylike."Neji commented.

"Yah, Hyuga, I think I like your uncle." She smiled at him, amused by the man that had just walked off.

"I'll have to apologize for his behavior. Every family has that member that they're ashamed off, and unfortunately, he's ours. Even a commoner like you doesn't deserve to see a man like that." Neji shook his head.

Ino gave him an angry looked.

"Still looking down on people?" She asked in a daring.

"Come, let's go." He said gesturing for her to link her arm with his.

* * *

Ino followed Neji around like a lost puppy and some sort of trophy that Neji had won. Even though she had gotten the opportunity to meet people she would have never dreamed of meeting (like council woman Tsunade, who was her idol), she was starting to think being a date to some business mogul was no fun. She didn't even get to talk to any of the people she met; Neji only allowed her to link her arm with his, smile, and bow, not even introduce herself.

Ino sighed, bored.

"Yah, this is getting boring. When do I get to go home?" She asked, as Neji stopped to get a glass of champagne and gave it to her, then picked one up for him.

"This is what it's like to be my date. Women would kill to be in your place." Neji smirked.

"Well, I'd kill to sit down. My feet are hurting me." She said, taking down the champagne in one gulp.

Neji stared at her, his white eyes grew wide and she burped and grinned at him after saying a silly excuse me.

"Is it normal for a woman to drink champagne in one gulp?" He asked, taking the glass from her.

"Where I came from, it is. Give it back!" She prompted, reaching for the cup Neji was holding over her.

"Why, are you going to drink again?" He asked as she continued reaching for the cup.

Ino stopped for a moment, and they stared at each other. An idea went off in her head. She smiled inwardly. She knew what she was about to do was going to work. It worked on every single man she had ever met.

She pouted at Neji, and then crossed her arms behind her back as she began to rock back and forth, confusing Neji.

"Hyuu-ga," She said, in a low, alluring voice, which startled Neji because he was use to her loud voice.

"What are you doing?" He asked, letting his guard down.

Ino continued to pout as she inched up to him, causing him to step back slowly.

"Hyuga, if you give me back the cup, I'll only drink one more glass of champagne, promise!" She smiled as she put up one finger for him, still pouting.

Neji looked at her, then at the cup, then back at her and chuckled.

"I was wondering what was wrong with your face; I should have guessed you wanted another glass of champagne. Fix your face, you'll scare people away." He said, handing her the cup.

Ino gaped at him surprised. Never in her life had she ever been told to fix her puppy face. It was a secret technique that even worked on gay men.

"Is your mouth still open?" Neji asked, looking at her.

She groaned as she watched him walked away. Before she followed, she slickly grabbed another cup of champagne and gulped it down, then ran up to catch him.

"Shameless." Neji said to her when she caught up.

"Neji, I'm honestly getting bored. When do I get to go home?" She asked, folding her hand impatiently.

"I thought only men were impatient,"

"Seriously though,"

"Stop whining, we're about to go meet everyone at that table. These are the people you're trying to fool. I'm not known to bring random women to occasions like this, nor am I known for dating blonde women." He explained, as they began walking toward the anticipated table.

"Let me guess, you're too intelligent for blondes right?"Ino asked as they were getting closer to the table.

"Indeed. My cousin's husband is proof that blondes are dumb. When you get to that table," He said, nodding his head towards a table where a few people were laughing with no worries.

"Introduce yourself properly. They're nosey people so they're going to ask you what school you went to. I beg you, do not say 'I went to the College of International Bartenders',-"

"Yah! What do you take me for? That's not even a real school. I didn't go to college." She told him.

"Don't say that either. Make something up. Since they will never see you again, you can come up with atrocious lies," He explained, as they finally stood close to the table where everyone can see them.

He turned to face her once more, and looked at her like a teacher would look at his student.

"You've met some of these people already, like Ko, Hanabi, Kiba, and Gaara from the bar,"

"Gaara?"

"Yes, he's the guy with the abnormally red colored hair and obnoxious tattoo on his face."

"Oh my! That beautiful man! I get to see him again!" Ino asked, almost jumping up and down.

Neji glared, annoyed.

"Will you concentrate? Anyway, Gaara is smart enough to figure out that I hired you to be my date to make my ex-girlfriend jealous, so I'll take care of him if anything happens. There are too many people to tell you about, so the main people you actually need to know are my cousin and ex-girlfriend."

"Your cousin? Didn't I already meet her? The one that looks like your duplicate?" Ino asked, point to Hanabi who was currently glaring at her uncle who was laughing obnoxiously.

Neji grabbed Ino's hand to stop her from the rude gesture of pointing her finger.

"No, not that one. I have another cousin. Her name is Hinata. She's like a sister to me and knows me inside out. She'll probably be able to tell I hired you too, but she won't say anything because she's that kind. She has dark indigo hair like my uncle. I'm pretty sure when you see her, you'll know it's her. If not, look for a clingy flash light that makes an annoying noises. If you miss her, you won't miss him." Neji explained.

"What about the woman I came to make jealous? What does she look like?"

"She has brown hair and brown eyes. She's not a fool either, so you must give a really good performance."

"Yes sir!" Ino grinned, trying her best to convince she wasn't nervous. So what if she was trying to fool a bunch of wealthy people? She'd never see them again anyway.

"Let's go—"

"Wait!"

"What? What!" Neji asked impatiently.

"What if your girlfriend and everyone else figure out that I am a fraud? What if they throw stuff at me or what if they send me to jail? I can't go to jail Hyuga! I can't!" Ino panicked, her palms began to sweat.

"Calm down, will you? It's not like I'm asking you to pretend we're in a relationship or something. It's just for one night and they'll never see you again…unless of course they see you working at my company." He added the last part teasingly.

"That doesn't make me feel any better."

"If anything happen, I'll take care of it okay?" He told her, searching her eyes.

"Okay. I trust you Hyuga." She said as she gave him a hug.

"What the hell are you doing?" Neji asked surprised as he shoved her off.

"Well, your friends are looking over here." She said, glancing over his shoulders at the group that were currently interested in them.

"Oh…good improvise." He nodded.

"Wait!" She said again.

"What now?"

Ino extended her arms to fix his tie and collar. She gave him a wink to explain what she was doing which Neji immediately picked up.

"Can we go now?" He asked gesturing for her to link her arms with his once more.

"Sure honey," Ino taunted as they walked towards the table together.

* * *

Everyone at the table stared at Neji and the women he had bought. They couldn't keep their eyes off the two. It wasn't because the date Neji bought was beautiful, surely she was, but something wasn't right. They couldn't decide if it was the fact she was everything Neji hated in a woman or perhaps it was the fact that they hadn't seen Neji with a woman since he and his ex broke up.

"Why are you all quiet? Have you never seen a human being before?" Neji asked, as he pulled out a chair for Ino, then sat in the chair next to hers.

Nobody said anything as they all watched Ino bow politely and then sat down very graciously.

Hanabi was the first one to crack.

"Don't I know you from somewhere?" She asked suspiciously, leaning into the table to get a better look at the blonde woman.

Neji cursed quietly. He almost forgot she had been there when he and Ino had got into a fight at the mall. Just when he was about to say something, Ino covered up for herself.

"Have we met? I'm not too familiar with this part of Tokyo. I just recently moved here about two months ago. I'm still getting around." Ino smiled kindly, almost convincing Neji himself.

"Are you done being rude?" Neji glared at his younger cousin, who apologized and properly introduced herself.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too. My name is Ino Yamanaka." She bowed once more.

Neji felt like she was a different woman. Her whole mannerism had change.

"Hello Yamanaka-san, my name is Ko Hyuga. It's a pleasure to meet you." The older man said, extending his hand to shake Ino. When she smiled and gave him her hand, he kissed it.

"What are you doing pervert!" Neji yelled almost, snatching Ino's hand from Ko who was grinning smugly. Ino herself was also shocked and was about to give him a good slap until she remembered she was suppose to be fancy.

"Why are you so loud nephew? I assumed she was Japanese-American, so I just greeted her the way Americans great their woman." Ko shrugged, winking at Ino.

Ino giggled nervously, gritting her teeth so nothing bad would come out of her mouth. Even if she was Japanese-America, that still didn't mean he had a right to kiss her hand freely.

"He's right about that Neji, you don't have to pop veins just because he kissed my hand." Ino joked pointing out the vein that had popped on to Neji's neck which caused a few at the table to laugh.

"Unfortunately, he's wrong about one thing." Ino's tone became rather stern while looking back at Ko who was staring at her with interest.

"What do you mean?"

"Do I really look Japanese American sir?" She asked with glee.

Neji and the rest of the table stared back in surprised. Some were more amused than others, but Neji wasn't one of them. He was more annoyed than anything.

"You certainly do!" Ko answered grinning back at her.

"Wow!" She gushed, covering her blushing cheeks. "I've always been told that I looked like Rinko Kikuchi or Kyoko Fukada, but never have I been told that I looked like an actual Japanese-American." She took a hold of his hand and stared deeply into his eyes, startling him as well as everyone else when she kissed his hand too.

"Thank you sir! That was really kind of you to say!" She said, kissing his hand again and bowing furiously.

Neji almost died. Ino smiled at Ko as she patted his hand, then let go of him.

"Did you hear that? He said I looked like a Japanese-American!" She gushed to Neji, who was only shaking his head, regretting inviting this woman as his date. The table laughed amused at the scene that had just took place, all but a few, especially two unamused Hyuga siblings.

"Neji, I like her. She's very funny." Ko nodded.

Everyone else shook their head as they continued to introduce themselves. She had memorized their name and faces already, in case she might run into them in the future. There was, Shino Aburame, Inuzuka Kiba (Ino finally remember the man's family ran one of the most famous pet spas), his older sister Inuzuka, Hana, Gaara (who she bowed to furiously because he was so beautiful), his brother Kankuro, Hidan (who made suggestive jokes to her, which made her twitch), two women named Ayame and Shizune, and other men name Genma, Kakashi, and Kotetsu.

Neji looked around searching for a few missing people.

"Where's Hinata?" He asked while Neji was chatting with Ayame about something ridiculous. They seemed to have a lot in common even though they were from different classes.

"Who knows? Neither of you were picking up my calls." Hanabi answered as she reached for a cup of champagne.

Neji took it from her.

"Still too young." He told her shaking no to her.

"Nii-san!" She pouted.

Ino stared at the two as Neji lectured Hanabi on how young ladies as herself didn't drink until they were old and were having marital problems or going through depression. He told her how she would grow wrinkles the morning after the party.

Ino laughed as she listened to the conversation while taking a glass of champagne and gulfing it down. It was her third one that night.

"He's lying!" She smiled as she passed a cup to Hanabi who looked at her, then took it smiling.

"What are you doing?" Neji asked annoyed, taking back the cup before Hanabi could drink it.

"Madame De Pompadour once said '_champagne is the only wine that leaves a woman beautiful after drinking it_'. It'll help her when she wakes up." Ino said, taking the cup again, giving it to Hanabi, and shielding it from Neji's reach until she finished drinking it.

"You have some nerve." Neji whispered to her.

"You need to losen up Hyuga. You're such a bore! Parties like this are for getting loose. You want to go dance?" She asked nodding to the dance floor.

Hanabi laughed along with Ko who had overheard the two.

"You want to go dance with Neji! This guy sitting in front of us?" Ko asked pointing at Neji laughing.

Hanabi was laughing hysterically.

"I don't dance." Neji rejected, ignoring the two who were sitting in front of him.

"Oh man! I can't believe you just asked Neji to dance! He has two left feet!" Kiba joined in laughing.

"Inuzuka, stay at your end of the table okay?" Neji warned.

"Is it true? I really want to dance!" Ino pouted.

"I'll dance with you." A deep voice from towards the end of the table said.

Neji and Ino both looked at the man who had barely said anything all night but had been keeping tabs on them.

It was Gaara.

"Y-you? You want to dance with her?" Neji said, pointing at the female next to him who was also shocked. Her face was almost burning from excitement.

"R-really?" She said abashed.

"Sure."

Kiba, Ko, and Hanabi watched the whole scene confused.

"Gaara can't dance either." Ayame grinned, teasing the red head.

"It's okay with me Ayame; at least he's willing to learn unlike my date over here." Ino smiled, getting up from the table.

Gaara smiled as he took her hand and was ready to lead her to the dance floor. Neji knew he was up to something. Perhaps he might have figured out who she was when he saw her and already figured out Neji's whole plan to make Ten-Ten jealous.

He stood up.

"I change my mind. Dance with me instead." He said grabbing her other hand.

"Wow! Ni-san is actually going to dance!"Hanabi told Ko.

Ino gracefully shook Neji off.

"He asked first." She said giving Gaara a pleasant smile.

Neji grabbed her hand again and gave her a warning look.

"Doesn't it make sense that I dance with my date before anybody else gets the right to?" His voice had gotten serious and Ino took a hint.

She gave Gaara an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry sir, he his right. Thank you for getting him to dance with me though!" She bowed to him in respect, and then Neji dragged her off.

"I wonder where they met! She's definitely not his type…I like her though!" Kiba told Ko as they all watched the two walk off.

"What do you think Ten-Ten will say about her?" Hanabi asked, leaving the whole table to whisper.

* * *

"I thought we were going to go dance!" Ino whined as Neji pulled her into a corner.

"What kind of acting was that?" Neji asked, ignoring her demands.

"What do you mean?" She asked innocently.

"Why did you kiss Ko's disgusting hands?"

"To make him feel as awkward as I felt. It was a great idea right?" She grinned.

"What did I tell you about Gaara? Didn't I say he is most likely to figure the reason why you're here?"

"Yes you did, but I can't just ignore a handsome man! If you gave me a chance, I could have came up with another lie to distract him. You have to believe in me!" She told him, placing her hands on his shoulder to calm him down.

"How do I make this clear so that you understand? What do you hate most in this world?"

Ino thought about it.

"Ironically, I hate people who deceive others." She grinned at the irony of the situation.

Neji rolled his eyes.

"Think of Gaara as someone who is decieveing you. We may be friends, but he's out to get me. He lives to embarrass me."

"So it's a rivalary?"

"Exactly. We can drink and eat together, but we can't share secrets because we'll use it against each other, understand?"

Ino nodded.

"Now get your hands off me." He said looking at her hands that were still on his shoulders. Ino apologized as she let go of him.

"You still want to dance?" She teased.

"You should know by now after all that ridicule that I don't dance." He said, walking away.

She quickly ran behind him and linked her hands with his again, surprising him.

"I won't mess up anymore!" She promised.

"Good, that means no more champagne for you either. You already had three. I was counting." He warned.

"What? Let me have one more! Then I won't drink anymore!"

"Nope and if you ever encourage my niece to drink again, I will hunt you down and kill you." Neji warned her.

Ino groaned at him.

"Hyuga, you can't even be nice to your date?"

Neji groaned recognizing the infamous voice of Uzumaki Naruto.

* * *

"Come on Yamanaka. Maybe if I pretend that I didn't hear anything, nothing will be there." He said tugging on Ino's arm to go.

"Wow Hyuga! You're still rude to your extended cousin! Face me you jerk!" The man's loud voice boomed as he followed the two.

"Be nice won't you? He's making a scene." Ino told him as she glanced back to the guy.

"Hyuga! Hyuga! Look at me! I'm calling you!" He continued chanting.

Neji stopped and faced the blonde.

"What do you want!" He asked the man who suddenly stopped when Neji faced him and gave him an idiotic grin that made Neji want to punch him in the teeth.

"Hello cousin! I haven't seen you since before the wedding ceremony. Did you miss me?" He grinned, lowering his voice, and asking Neji the most annoying questions.

Ino looked at the man. He seemed familiar also. His hair was a golden blonde and his blue eyes were a much deeper color than her's. He had whisker tattoos on both of his cheeks. His grin was way too familiar! It reminded Ino of one of her favorite boxers…

"Look, just because you married my cousin doesn't mean I like you or accept you, especially in public. Never ever in your life should you call me 'cousin' again." Neji glared at the still grining blonde.

"Wow, still bitter aren't we? I told you before _cousin, _you don't have to be bitter! I will put my life on the line for Hinata and I will forever love her, so you should accept me instead of being bitter." He laughed throwing his hand around Neji's shoulder.

"Uzumaki! Do you want to die right here!" Neji asked him.

Ino gasped. She suddenly remembered why he seemed so familiar. It couldn't possibly be….No. It couldn't be him! It couldn't be her favorite boxer Uzumaki Naruto!

Naruto glanced at her and they stared at each other.

"Oh! Hyuga, you've updated your taste in women! I didn't take you for the kind of guy who dated blondes!" He grinned at his extended family member who was still irked. Neji shoved him off.

"Hello! I'm Uzumaki Naruto! It's a pleasure to meet you!" He greeted, smiling at Ino who was too shock to do anything but stare in amazement.

Naruto continued to stare at her.

"It can't be…" She mumbled moving closer to him.

"Hmm? What are you saying? Are you okay? You're turning red." He said to her as he felt her forehead. He moved in really closed to her until they were on eye level.

"Are you not feeling well?" He asked causing Ino turn really red.

"Do you always have to touch people?" Neji asked slapping his head off Ino's head.

"Hyuga!" She yelled at him which startled the two men.

"W-what's your problem?" Neji asked frightened.

Ino ignored him as she walked up to Naruto and bowed.

"My name is Ino Yamanaka. I'm a big fan!" She gushed bowing her head furiously.

"You can't be serious." Neji said shaking his head. He was starting to get a head ache.

"R-really? Wow! I didn't know I had a female audience either!" Naruto smiled at her.

"Are you kidding me? My father and I have been following you since 2002 when you had your first match against Haku! I remember going to one of your matches for my father's birthday! You're amazing!"

Naruto stared at her shocked. He really hadn't met a women who actually watched boxing and enjoyed it like this women seem to enjoy it.

"You really watch my matches?" He asked her making sure he heard right.

"Of course! My father, my friends and I get together every Thursday with Miso Ramen and cheer you on!"

"Miso Ramen? I love Miso! Wow! I really like this woman! Hyuga, your date is cool!" Naruto said.

"I should have known. You're both blonde. Something should have told me that you were an idiot too." Neji said to Ino who just ignored him again.

"How did you get stuck on a date with a prude like that jerk?" Naruto said, pointing at Neji.

"I was drugged," Ino joked as her and Naruto laughed together.

Neji couldn't believe his eyes as he watched the two chat happily as if they were old friends catching up. What woman in her right mind would cheer this sad excuse for a fighter every Thursday? He shook his head.

"Naruto?" A voice called from the crowd.

Ino and Naruto's conversation paused for a second until they found the voice that was calling him.

"Hinata!" Naruto called happily as he walked over to his wife and then lead her back to Neji and Ino.

"That's her." Neji whispered to Ino as Ino took the hint.

She watched the petite woman walk up to Neji and gave him a hug.

"Why are you late?" Neji asked her as soon as she released him.

"We couldn't find a parking spot. Are you upset?" She asked him apologetically.

"There's no excuse for tardiness Hyuga." Neji said smiling to his cousin as he ruffled her hair.

"Hyuga?" She called back to him.

"I think you mean Uzumaki." Naruto grinned, placing his arm around Hinata which made her smile and made Neji almost gag.

"I wouldn't even offend my greatest enemy by calling them that." He said to them.

"Screw you Neji! Hinata, I think I've finally met another cool woman besides you! She actually watches my matches and knows my statistics!" Naruto said excitedly.

"R-really? Who?" Hinata said looking around.

Naruto was about to introduce Ino he had quietly been watching the whole thing, but was interrupted by another.

"So you finally found Naruto huh?"

Neji turned to look at Ten-Ten as she made her way through the crowd in her ball gown dress. Her normally held up brown hair was flowing

"I'm sorry! I just found him Ten-Ten! Thanks for helping me! I even found Neji Ni-san too." Hinata smiled gratefully at the brunette women as her brown eyes found Neji's. They stared at each other for a while until Neji glanced away.

"Good to see you Neji." Ten-Ten greeted enthusiastically while Neji just nodded.

Ino watched the display in front of her. It felt like she was in an atmosphere she didn't belong. Everyone around her was beautiful, petite, polite, and graceful, especially the two women in front of her. She had never in her life felt more unconfident about her looks than she did now. She felt little compared to Hinata who had wore a 'wild rose' colored cocktail dress that would seem trashy on her, but seemed elegant on the petite woman. She hid behind Neji more, second guessing herself. They would figure her out. She didn't fit in.

Ten-Ten caught her eyes.

"Uh? We met earlier! Did you find your date?" She said excitedly to Ino who was surprised when the brunette ran up to her.

Ino suddenly relized that she was the kind women who she had chatted with earlier.

"W-we did! I found him!" She said politely as she bowed.

Neji looked between the two shocked. How did they know each other?

"Hinata, that's the woman who I was talking about. She's Ino, Neji's date." Naruto introduced.

* * *

Ten-Ten froze as the atmosphere between Neji and Ten-Ten became tensed unlike Ino, who didn't know what she had gotten herself into.

Hinata noticed the situation at hand also and could feel the tense space. She had to break it.

"I'm sorry for being rude. I'm Uzumaki Hinata, it's a pleasure to meet you." She smiled to the woman and bowed her head.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too. Neji has said many good things about you." Ino smiled politely.

"H-he's your date?" Ten-Ten asked baffled.

Ino nodded, clingy to Neji.

"He's the guy who made me wait." She smiled.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

**_Hello! Sorry for the long wait! I hope the length makes up for it! I wrote this in a rush so grammar and spelling will be bad but I'll do my best to edit you all for your support and amazing reviews! I can't believe I'm almost at the forty review mark for this story! I really appreciate. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter too! Rinko Kikuchi and Kyoko Fukada are actual Japanese actress, so I don't own them. If they ever did Naruto live, I think Rinko Kikuchi would be perfect for the part because blonde hair looks great on her!_**

**_ I should mention for those of you who are confused that this is a Neji-Ino-Shika fic. I'm not sure how I am going to fit in the whole ShikaIno thing. I've never been good at writing love triangles, so I'll do my best with that one. I know Ino has a bit of a crush on Gaara but it won't go anywhere. It's kind of comic relief too. I should also mention Karin is probably Ino's only true female friend for now. There are so many males in Naruto, but so little females so it's hard. Karin also lives in the same apartment complex as Ino but isn't her roommate. She and Deidara are not dating either. If you're confused about anything else, tell me so I can clear it up! _**

**_Anyway, I really think you guys will like the next chapter. It's going to be really dramatic and fun for me to write. Hope to hear from you!_**


	7. Seven: Complicating Complicated Matters

**_Charming and Charmless_**

**_Chapter Seven- Complicating Complicated Matters_**

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* * *

_**

The night was flying by quickly. The atmosphere was comfortable, and every was laughing and delighted in the food at the occasion. Ino didn't realize it, but she looked like one of them. She would giggle at the right time, eat the right way, but she also stood out from them. Her laugh was a little louder than the rest of the females, and she drank wine like most of them drank water. She didn't seem drunk though. She stayed cool and well behaved. Most women would have fainted after drinking the same amount of alcohol.

She'd joke with Naruto, and the whole table would laugh except for the occasional prunes of course, but all in all, most of them liked her. They thought she was funny and cute.

Ten-Ten continued to stare at her as she and Naruto started playing a stupid game. She couldn't believe this outsider was fitting in well with everybody. She had known most of the people at their table for about five years if not more, but she was never completely part of them. They all knew where she came from. They all knew Neji was who gave her new found life. They all knew Neji pulled her out of the poverty she had grown up in, but they would never forget it.

"So where are you from?" Ko asked the blonde curiously after she won another game of I Never. Her blue eyes looked at his, and even though her vision was starting to get blurry and she was regretting drinking those three glasses of champagne. She knew it wasn't good for her, but either way, she went on.

She smiled at Ko and started to talk, even though her speech was a little slurred.

"I was born in Konoha." She smiled at Ko.

"Really?" Hinata asked surprised.

Ino nodded smiling.

"Most of us are from Konoha, except for Naruto and Ten-Ten. They're from Tokyo." Ayame explained.

"We've all known each other since we were younger…Konoha is a small town, we should have known you from there right?" She asked, looking around for support from her friends.

Neji sat, waiting for Ino to make a mind blowing mistake.

"You didn't let me finish. I was born in Konoha, but my father's job consistently had us moving around all my life. I lived in Sapporo most of my childhood life, then I lived in Osaka in my teen years, and then we moved to Tokyo, and I've been here ever since."

"Oh, that makes sense. What kind of job did your father have? It sounds like he was in the military."

"Not so much the military. He was part of a government corporation. I'm not really allowed to talk about it."

They all nodded in understanding. Neji was quite impressed with her smooth tounge. She lied so easily, it scared him.

"So, how long have you guys been dating?" Ko asked, leaning in curiously.

"Old man!" Hanabi said embarrassed by her uncle.

Every one's attention was locked on the two as Ino's blue eyes widened as did Neji's lavender eyes. He knew someone would ask that question, but he was praying that nobody would. He was hoping they would somehow know that she wasn't his type of woman and he was just trying to make Ten-Ten jealous, but he knew that was asking for too much.

"What? I'm just addressing the giant elephant in the room that everyone else has chosen to ignore." Ko explained, and then turned his attention back to Ino, who was still staring at him.

"D-Dating?" She repeated.

"Even though my uncle's mouth is too big…we've all been wondering how long you've been dating. Neji is not the kind of guy who goes on dates with women and doesn't try to court them. He's always looking to marry someone." Hinata replied, just as interested in the situation as everyone else.

Ten-Ten looked at the two. Neji and Ino looked nervous as if they were trying to avoid the question all night. Their eyes would constantly meet each other's and and Neji's eyes would constantly meet Ten-Ten's brown eyes.

She put on a bold smile.

"Don't be shy, I won't be too mad." She grinned winking at him. She prayed nobody heard the venom coming out of her mouth. Of course she would be mad. She only came back to Tokyo to do one thing, and that was to get back with Neji after she left him.

"I can't hold my mouth any longer either. If you guys don't tell them, I will." Gaara smirked.

Ino looked at him confused.

"Tell them what? We're not—"

She was suddenly interrupted by Neji's foot nudging her under the table. She looked at him confused, holding herself back from cursing at him for the sharp pain he caused her.

"Why are you guys publishing my personal life? What is your business with who I date and who I decide I want to have a relationship with?" He looked directly at Ten-Ten when he said so.

He knew one of the reason they broke up was because people were always sticking their noses in his relationship. It was a big factor for Ten-Ten when breaking up with him. She hated it so much.

"Why didn't you tell me of all people?" Hinata mumbled.

"There's a misunderstanding. Neji and I aren't dating." Ino explained nervously, shaking her head.

"Well, if you guys won't tell us, Gaara will. Gaara, how long have they been dating?" Ko asked and all the attention turned to Gaara.

Gaara smirked.

"You know I'm bad at keeping secrets Neji." He apologized.

Neji gritted his teeth. This man was out to embarrass him.

"I introduced them to each other three months ago. I never knew that Neji would be interested in her, but he was and he asked me to set them up."

"What? What are you saying?" Ino asked, shocked that this man was lying in front of these people. How could this beautiful man turn out to be such a snake? She was tempted to choke him.

"Wow, you're so smooth Neji. So that means for three months you guys have been dating? How did you manage to hide this from everybody?" Naruto asked.

Ten-Ten's grip on her cup tightened. She didn't feel too good.

Ino looked at Neji, pleading with her eyes that he clear up the silly rumor that everybody was starting to believe.

"Neji, tell them the truth." She told him.

Neji sighed as he looked around the whole table. His eyes met Gaara's green eyes, and he knew the man was playing a game. Neji was never the one to lose a game, so he decided to play along.

"I know you wanted to keep this a secret, but everybody knows now." He said calmly to Ino. His eyes were looking directly at her's but she couldn't find him. It was almost as if he wasn't actually looking at her.

Ino looked at him confused, almost as if she was asking what he was doing.

"We've been dating for two months now. We aren't sure of where it's going since her job keeps her out of town for a long period of time. I was planning on announcing it tonight anyway, and Gaara helped me to do it. We're very happy." He smiled, pulling Ino, who was still trying to comprehend what was going on, closer to him.

Neji's friends clapped, happy for the sudden announcement.

"I must say, I never thought you'd get over Ten-Ten. Now I have good news to take back home." Ko said, leaning over the table to pat Neji's shoulder.

"Welcome to our family." He said to Ino, who was speechless. She smiled uncertainly as she shook Ko's hand again.

Hyuga Neji would be dead by the end of tonight. She was so sure of it.

* * *

Ino inhaled the fresh air outside of the hall.

"Let's go back in, it's cold." Neji said nonchalantly.

"What the hell was that about? Your friends think we're dating! You told your friends we've been dating for two months and they believed it! You told me to be your date for the night, not your girlfriend!" She yelled at him.

Neji covered his ears. Her voice was loud.

"I think you had too many drinks tonight. Let's go and we can talk about this tomorrow. If we stay up here, people are going to make assumptions." He said, turning his back getting ready to leave.

"You're right. I'm going to go down there and tell everyone you're joking." She said, walking past him.

Neji grabbed her wrist and pulled her back.

"Let go of me!" She scolded as she tried to fight her way out of his grip.

"Do you think people are going to believe you? Even if they did, Gaara is just going to twist their minds and make them believe it. You think I like this too?" He asked, his stern voice startling her.

"If you don't like it, then let's go tell everyone the truth, about how you hired me to be your date. I told you, I hate being deceived, but I hate deceiving people even more! I've never told so much lies in one day before. It's driving my conscience crazy!"

"Help me." He said suddenly.

"What?" She said, her voice as quite as his.

"Help me this once. If you go tell them that I bribed you to be my date tonight, I'm going to look more pitiful than the time she made me look pitiful in front of all of them. For once, I need her to feel the same shame she put me through. Help me win this once." He asked, slowly letting go of her wrist.

Ino looked at his face, and he seemed to be genuinely pleading for her help.

"Hyuga, do you remember when you asked me if it was normal for a woman to drink champagne like I did and I said where I come from it is normal?" She asked.

He nodded.

"You know one thing that's not normal where I come from? Lying just to make someone else look or feel bad. As fun as this was, as much as I like getting to dress up and going to a party I would normally never have been invited to, as much as I like wearing pearls, as much as I like this feeling of being rich, I hate this feeling of lying to people especially to make someone else feel bad. I've been a victim of this before, and I never want to do this to anybody. In the end, you'll be hurt more than she will be. I'm not going to help you hurt yourself." She smiled sullenly.

She started to walk to the door.

"Then what the hell am I suppose to do now?" He asked her.

"You know what you have to do. Besides, she seems like she still likes you. She was staring at you all night and glaring at me. Just talk to her." Ino smiled.

She left Neji standing there, his fist tightened.

* * *

Ino sighed as she walked down from the staircase of the roof. It was time for her to go home. She was starting to get very dizzy.

She looked around from where she was standing as she watched the people talk and dine. She knew she would never get to experience this type of environment again. After she walked out of that door, she would go back to being a bartender…not even that. She would go back to looking for a job.

She smiled. She would go wash up and then take her leave for good.

Ino hummed as she washed her hands. She looked at herself in the mirror one last time and stared at her new short hair (short to her anyway). It was funny how she went through all of this only for one night. She still couldn't believe she cut her hair.

Just when she was about two leave, two women walked into the stall.

"Wow, Sasuke and Sakua look amazing together." The short one said.

"I would kill to be Sakura. Not only does she have the hottest boyfriend, but she's also an international model. She is so gorgeous." The other one cooed.

Ino's ears perked up.

'_Sakura? International model?'_

The name and description sounded too familiar. Ino ignored the nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach.

It couldn't be the Sakura she was thinking of right?

"Excuse me, who is Sakura and Sasuke?" She asked, interrupting the ladies conversation.

"How rude! Don't you have shame for eavesdropping on our conversation!" The short girl asked.

Ino folded her arms at them.

"Maybe if you weren't talking so loud I would have minded my business. Your mouth is so big, I could fit this whole hall into it." She rolled her eyes at them.

"Who do you think you are?" The girl shouted back.

"Fine, fine. Let's not fight, just tell me who you were talking about."

The two women rolled their eyes.

" We were talking about this host of this party, Sasuke and his girlfriend Sakura, the international model."

"Sakura?"

"You know, Haruno Sakura?"

Ino froze. It was her!

"How do you not know the name of the host of this party? Are you a party crasher?" One of the women asked.

Ino patted her shoulder and gave her a smile.

"Thanks for telling me! I knew who they were, but my boyfriend didn't tell me their names." With that, Ino walked out of the bathroom.

She kept walking until she noticed a large amount of people gathered around the stair case. She pulled aside one of the waiters and asked a question.

"Excuse me, what's going on over there?"

"Don't you know? Uchiha Sasuke and his girlfriend are here. They're making an enterence. If you please excuse me, I have to go work now." The waiter bowed, then rushed off.

Ino's once smiling face disappeared as she walked toward the crowd. She reached them and pushed through them until she got a view of the two anticipated host and indeed, it was who she suspected to see.

Haruno Sakura, the girl who stole her dreams.

* * *

**_Hi! Long time no see! I'm sorry I haven't been able to update lately! I hope you guys aren't upset too much. After Christmas break, school just bombarded me! I'm happy to say the story will really get started now. I realized it should have started a while ago if I want to finish this in 25 chapters, but I guess it will be longer! Thank you all for the amazing reviews, and for making writing this story really fun! Please excuse the grammar mistakes and what not. I hope you enjoy this chapter because I wasn't too confident when I wrote it. See you soon!_**


	8. Eight: Blast From the Past

_**Charming and Charmless**_

_**Chapter 8- Blast From the Past**_

* * *

Ino walked around the hall, looking for Neji. She couldn't find him anywhere. She hoped she could find him before he would actually announce that they _weren't _seeing each other. She smiled mischievously as she found Neji talking to a business man. He was acting very normal, as if she didn't just tell him to go ahead and announce to the world that he was a liar. She wasn't surprised. Although she had known him for about a couple of weeks now, his attitude was very predictable and she could tell his pride wouldn't let her embarrass him.

"Sakura! You look _amazing_ tonight!"

Ino's attention quickly shifted to where the girlish squeals were coming from. Indeed, Haruno, Sakura was making her way towards her, her fans following behind her and her boyfriend as she smiled politely to them. Ino smirked. She still had that fake smile from high school. It was one that Ino was so used to seeing when ever her old friend use to pretended as if everything was alright. She hadn't change, not even a bit. The only thing that was different about her was her short pink hair as compared to the long pink mane she had grown out in high school. Ino remembered she and Sakura were always fight over whose hair could grow faster or whose hair was healthier.

Ino smirked.

"I guess I won that challenge with all that bleach in your hair."

Aside from her hair, the drastic change Ino saw the most were the clothes Sakura wore as well as the jewels on her fingers and neck. Growing up, Sakura's family was poor and could barely afford the house that they stayed in. She would wear the same clothes constantly until Ino took her shopping. She didn't even know what fashion was until Ino introduced her to it. Now, as compared to Ino, she was a fashion icon. Life made Ino laugh.

In her defense, everything Sakura had today belonged to her. She was being greedy, but what Sakura did to her broke her down physically and emotionally and it was time to repay her for the favor.

She blinked as she watched the two pass in front of her.

As if it was an electric reaction, Sakura glanced back and jade eyes met blue eyes for the first time again in many years. Ino smiled, one that was filled with hatred probably.

She sighed relieved when the pink hair model turned back to her boyfriend. It wasn't time for Sakura to know she was there but she would know soon enough.

* * *

Neji gulped down another glass of champagne as he pretended to listen to how this man's business was running and how his daughter was currently single. Neji had seen the man's daughter a couple of time and even though she passed when it came to intellect, she wasn't much too look at. To Neji, even though many believed other wise, no matter how smart a woman was, her looks should be just as good as her smartness, if not better. He'd take that blond nymph over this man's daughter any day.

He sighed as he took another sip of champagne. He had refused to go back to the table where his family and friends were waiting for him and his "girlfriend" to come back from dancing. He scoffed. He couldn't believe they actually thought he went dancing. This was just more proof most of them were idiots.

He bowed as he excused himself from the conversation.

"Ni-san!"

Neji turned around to find his cousin Hinata rushing towards him. He panicked. How was he suppose to explain that he hired some stranger to be his girlfriend to his cousin who looked up to him?

"Hinata, what are you doing here?" He asked as she walked up to him.

She giggled.

"Do you think I really believed that you came to dance? I know you Ni-san, you've hated dancing since we were seven. Where's your date?" She asked looking around.

"D-date?" He studdered.

"Ah, I mean your girlfriend. I can't believe you didn't tell me of all people." She said disappointed.

Neji scratched his head, avoiding eye contact.

"I haven't had time to take you and Hanabi out since you got married." He said nervously.

"Ni-san, are you that nervous about having a girlfriend? You've been acting so fidgity. Are you mocking me perhaps?" She smiled.

He relaxed a bit and laughed quietly.

"You mean like when you tried to hide the fact you were dating Naruto? You should have kept him in hiding if you ask me."

They laughed.

"Hyuga!" Ino's voice called as she continued to search the hall for him. She pushed through the countless amount of people dancing, inhaling all their different types of scents. It was making her dizzy, and she needed fresh air.

"Isn't that Ino over there?" Hinata pointed out, calling Neji's attention to the woman he had brought with him. Her face was a rosy red, and she looked confused.

"Yamanaka!" He called, gesturing for her to come.

Ino heard Neji's voice. She followed it until she found him standing there with his cousin as they stared at her.

She weakly walked up to him and impulsively hugged him.

This freaked Neji out and he wanted to push her off but he knew it would seem weird to Hinata. She squeezed him even more.

"Why do they wear so much perfume?" She asked.

"Yeah, they're like that. All the mixing scents must be making you feel weak. Comfort her Ni-san!" Hinata encouraged.

Neji gave his cousin a dazed look as if she was crazy. She gestured for him to go on.

"Don't be shy!" She smiled.

Neji cringed as he awkwardly gave Ino three pats on the back.

"Yah! What kind of comforting is that?" She grinned mischievously into his suit jacket as she took his two arms and put them around her waist. As dizzy as she was feeling, she definitely couldn't give up the opportunity to make Neji feel uncomfortable.

"Yamanaka, what are you doing right now!" Neji gritted angrily under his teeth, trying to smile in the process too, so only he and she could hear.

"Hinata, can you excuse us again? I really need some fresh air. We'll back in two minutes, I promise." Ino pleaded.

As soon as Hinata excused them, Ino grabbed Neji and ran off with him.

Hinata smiled. She couldn't believe the type of girl her older cousin was dating. She was in no way Neji's type. If anything, Neji hated girls like her which made Hinata more amused. Her curiousity as to how they met was reaching a new level. She thought Ino was outstandingly beautiful, enough to be a model.

Hinata turned to return to her table only to find Ten-Ten staring with a frown on her face, as if she was about to cry. Her brown eyes met Hinata's lavenders and she gave a weak smile to reassure her that she was okay but Hinata wasn't falling for it.

* * *

Ino let out a huge sigh of relief as Neji dragged his feet behind her. He watched as she closed her eyes then inhaled and exhaled.

"What the hell were you doing-"

"Shhhh! I'm getting fresh air!" She said shutting him up.

Neji hissed annoyed that she had interrupted him.

"Why are you back here? I thought you were leaving?"

Ino turned to look at him.

"Do you think we were convincing back there?" She asked. He didn't answer but he continued glaring.

"Well you weren't as convincing as you could have been. It's a good I'm a good actress. I think I made your ex jealous though." She grinned.

That caught Neji's attention.

"Answer my question; Why are you back here?" He asked sternly.

"I thought about it again. I really need a job." She said crossing her arms.

"That's it? You gave me a big speech about deceiving people only to change your mind?" He knew there was more to that.

"Fine! Fine! You caught me. I'm on a mission. I've been meaning to do this since I finished high school."

"A mission? You're not planning on stealing these people's trust funds are you?"

"Yah, what do you take me for? If anything, I'm taking back what belongs to me."

"Meaning?"

"I saw someone I went to high school with back in there. She cheated me out of something that I really wanted and now she's reaping what I sowed. I figured if you'll help me out, I'll help you out."

"So you'll help me decieve my ex-girlfriend and I'll help you get revenge? This sounds like child play to me. You know what, I'm starting to think you were right earlier. Let's not do this."

"Oh don't be like that Hyuga! Come on!" She pleaded pulling his arm back forcing him too look at her grinning face.

He snatched his arm back and walked away.

* * *

"You guys think you're so freaking great don't you? You held up the freaking party because everybody was waiting for you." Naruto said glaring at Sasuke who stared the blonde non-nonchalantly.

"I don't remember sending an invitation to you to come to this party." He said pulling out a chair for Sakura.

Sakura sat gracefully and Sasuke sat next to her.

"Why I outta-" Naruto gritted under his teeth, balling up his fist.

"Hinata, I don't know how you guys fell in love. Did he drug you?" Sakura whispered loudly, teasing the hot blooded man.

Hinata smiled polietly.

"I was the one who actually drugged him." She said, defending her husband. Her bold statement shocked the table but Naruto laughed out loud and kissed her on her cheek, embarrassing her.

"Get a room will you?" Hanabi mumbled disgusted.

Ko ruffled her hair.

"Don't act like you don't do stuff like that with your boyfriend." He said, making her embarrassed too.

"Get off me!" She yelled at her uncle.

"So where's Neji? I heard he brought a beautiful date." Sakura said, turning her attention to Hinata.

"She more than beautiful. She's blonde!" Ko chimed.

"Blonde? I didn't know Neji had a thing for blonde women," Sakura said surprised.

"We didn't know either, only Gaara knew. Apparently they've been dating for a month. She's a wrestling fan of mine to!" Naruto added excitedly.

"Sounds unbelievable." Sasuke said uninterested.

"Really Gaara?" Sakura asked interested in what the quiet man had to say.

"Why don't you ask them yourselves?" He smirked and nudge toward the two.

Sakura's jade eyes turned to watch Neji and his new girlfriend walk towards the table. Neji was embarrassingly looking away from the crowd of people watching them walk hand in hand while his girl was giggling, trying to get him to look at her.

She continued to watch them until they reached the table.

"Sorry we took so long! We needed to get some fresh air." Ino giggled girlishly.

"That's all you got? Fresh air? Why is Neji so red?" Naruto teased.

" It's too embarrassing." Ino winked as they sat back in their seats. Neji denied the claim.

Ino's eyes caught Sakura's eyes as the pink haired woman got familiar with her. Sakura almost choked on her food as she recognized the crystal blue eyes that were giving her a smile. She began coughing immdiately, turning red.

"What's wrong? Sasuke asked patting her back.

"Nothing, nothing! The shrimp went down the wrong pipe." She smiled, trying to convince the curious eyes that were watching worriedly.

"Neji, isn't that the famous model? Haruno Sakura?" Ino asked loudly, pretending to whisper into Neji's ear.

Neji rolled his eyes and mumbled, "You sure know everyone don't you?"

"It is you!" Ino said, gasping.

"Is this your new girlfriend?" Sasuke asked, surprise at how loud and bubbly she was. She looked familiar too, but he couldn't remember where he had seen her.

"I'm sorry for being rude. I'm Yamanaka, Ino. It's a pleasure to meet you." She said, extending her greetings to Sasuke who took it consciously.

Ino then turned over to Sakura who was looking at her with her big green eyes, fear writing all over them. Ino had to control herself from smirking as she spoke,

"You must be Haruno, Sakura! I'm a big fan!"

To Sakura, those were words of doom. She knew the intent behind it and she couldn't shake it off. Her past was back to haunt her, in full flesh.

* * *

**Hi guys, sorry for the super late update. I've been testing and finishing school for the last couple of months. The good news is I am on summer break so hopefully I'll be able to finish this by the end of the summer. I'll try to update frequently if not weekly. Also, I am writing my own original story and you can find me on Wattpad, under the name SolarNaylor. I would love if you could support me and give me feed back. Thank you for patiently waiting and I hope you like this chapter. Please excuse spelling, grammar, and other errors. See you soon!**


	9. Nine: The Games Men Play

_**Charming and Charmless**_

_**Chapter 9- The Games Men Play**_

* * *

Sakura stood over the bathroom sink staring at her reflection in the extravagant mirror. She had to be dreaming. No way could Yamanaka Ino be out there with _her _friends, sitting and laughing as if it was normal.

No. She had to have been seeing things. Sakura carfully used the baby wipe to cleanse her now sweaty face. She stared at her reflection and all of a sudden felt plain in the beautiful ball gown dress, as if it didn't belong to her. Suddenly, her reflection became the same girl she was when she was 17: poor and desperate. She looked unhealthy. She closed her eyes to snap out of the trans but it was stil the same reflection as before.

"Haruno."

She knew that voice. It immediately snapped her out of the trans she was in. She could now see her real reflection and the person who stood behind her.

She straightened herself up and gave a confident smirk.

"Yamanaka, it's funny we meet like this. How has life in the dumpster been?" She taunted, knowing damn well Ino hated to be reminded that she was the one who ended up on the losing end of the situation.

Ino smirked back at her.

"The dumpster huh? You should know though...you came from the same dumpster, remember?" Ino said as she began circling Sakura.

Sakura shook her head, giving Ino an identical smirk.

"You're still using this Yakuza style of bullying?"

"Oh? So you do remember something from the dumpster. Nice!" Ino mocked clapping for her.

"What the hell do you want?"

"Why would I want something? Can't we just catch up? I haven't seen you in six whole years! Or is it that you know you have something of mine?"

"Like what? Everything I have today belongs to me! I worked hard for it and I deserve it!" Sakura said getting flustured.

Her last statement was like a stab to Ino, making her even more furious. She shoved the pink haired girl.

"You worked hard? You call slee-" Ino's cheeks was instantly met with a slap.

Ino stood there, her hand over her burning cheeks. This was what it felt like six years ago when she found out Sakura had betrayed her and took away everything she had been working her whole life for.

Sakura's hand throbbed, her heart racing. She really hadn't meant to slap the blonde woman but she couldn't let her bring up the past.

Seeing Ino in her shocked state, she took it as a time to retreat. Before she left the bathroom, she fearfully but boldly left in with brief words:

"Leave the past in the past. I'm not that girl anymore."

"You've gotten very greedy I see." Ino quickly added before the door slammed.

* * *

For the remainder of the party, Ino and Sakura kept their distance and refused to glance at each other. Neji had taken notice to Ino's suddenly quiet demeanor though she was still very upbeat and active in her conversations. He had also taken notice of her awkwardness with Sakura, making a mental notice to ask about that later.

"Hey, let's go." He told her when the clock striked 11:30.

"What? You're leaving already?" Ko said dissappointed.

"Yeah, why are you leaving?" Naruto chimed in.

"Some of us have to work tomorrow." Neji said pushing in his chair.

"Aw come on Ino, stay a bit longer won't you?" Naruto asked, Hinata nodding in agreement.

"I actually agree with Neji. I take my sleep very seriously. It was a pleasure meeting you all." She waved as she got up from her seat.

Neji watched suprise as she gave him a look that said she was ready to go. She linked her arms with his and they began to walk away. Ino would frequently look back and wave. Once they were out of sight, she took a breather and raced to Neji's car.

"I cannot wait to get out of this dress!" She exclaimed as their driver opened the door for her. She nodded polietly and thanked him, then jumped in the car.

Neji entered the car, forcing her to move over since he didn't want to have any contact with her skin.

"I'm surprise you even agreed to leave early."

Ino ran her hand through her hair and streatched as if she was in her apartment.

"I've been crying that I wanted to leave early all night." She yawned, leaning on her window sullenly.

It was weird. She was awfully quiet, something even Neji had to admit was unsettling.

"Yamanaka?"

"Huh?" Ino answered drowsily.

"Did you get back what you wanted from Sakura?" He asked, testing her to see what she would say.

Ino sighed sadly and shook her head.

"No...not yet." She said, her voice drifting off as she fell asleep.

Neji watched her as she slept, curious as to what her relationship with Sakura was and what she could possibly need to get from her.

Neji didn't know much about Sakura. He had never really took interest in the woman. All he knew was that she was an international model who had been dating Sasuke for about a year and a half.

Neji's train of thoughts went on until he felt something heavy on his shoulder. It had turned out to be Ino, laying innocently on his shoulder and sleeping peacefully. Neji was surprised as to how many faces she had. There was the annoying face, the beautiful face (which he would never admit), the angry face, the mischivious face, and now the peaceful sleeping face.

Neji wasn't that moved though. He did his best not to wake her up and pushed her off him. It caused her to bump her head on her window. She groaned softly, but went back to sleep soundly.

* * *

Ino woke up to someone, Neji that is, poking her in an annoying manner. When she set up, her neck ached as if she had slept on bricks.

"Where am I?" She asked confused, as her vision began to clear up until she could see Neji.

"You're home." He said, opening the door so she could get out. Ino crawled out of the car, feeling unbelievably tired. She groaned as she took of her heels and walked bearfooted to the door steps of the apartment complex.

"Don't forget you have to return the dress." Neji said annoyed as he watched the hem of the dress be dragged on the floor.

Ino continued to mumble as she searched her bag for her keys.

"Oh! My key! I can't fi-"

By the time she realized she didn't have the key, Neji's car was already turning the corner. Ino frowned at the back of the car, completely distressed.

"Jerk." She mumbled, as she pulled out her cell phone from her bag.

* * *

"You're an idiot sometimes, you know that?"

Ino looked up to find Shikamaru staring down at her lately. She wanted to smile at him, but she didn't have energy and ended up hiding her face in her knees.

"Comfort me Shikamaru, I'm sad." She pleaded, scooting over on the stair case so he could sit next to her.

As soon as he joined her, she placed her head on his shoulder, her arms circling his waist. Shikamaru took a look at her attire, wondering where she had been coming from.

"Where did you go? Did you drink?" He asked, adjusting himself so she would be comfortable.

"I drank a lot tonight." She admitted.

"You know it's not good for your anemia. That's probably why you're feeling so down." He said, feeling on her forehead.

"I saw Sakura today, that's why I'm feeling down." She told him, staring at nothing in particular.

There was silence between them.

"You want talk about it?"

"I feel so stupid for trusting her back then. I was so naieve. I can't trust anybody in this world, not Sakura, not my mom, just you, Chouji, and daddy. Everyone else just uses me. That's why I love you Shikamaru. You never let me down." She said.

Shikamaru just listened to her.

"What are you two weirdos doing out here? Did you guys go on a date?" Deidara's voice boomed from the door of the apartment complex as he peaked at them.

"Shut your mouth and come help me take her upstairs. She's been drinking and forgot her key."

"Does she forget she's anemic?" Deidara said, less concerned as he walked out of the apartment with a loose black shirt and black sweat pants.

The two helped the sluggish Ino get up to her room, then waited for Shikamaru to pick her apartment lock.

* * *

Ino rolled over on her bed, feeling completely dehydrated. She felt vey weak as she searched around for water. Shikamaru had already prepared for her a nice glass of water. She quickly drank it and streatched.

It was a new morning and she was ready to begin her day. She took her bath and brushed her teeth as she got ready to go work in her family flower shop. She looked at the dress from the night before which she had struggled to take of. It reminded her that she needed to see Neji and talk about their plans and how their relationship was going to work.

She threw on a tiered stripped top as well as black skinny jeans and sandals and headed to Neji's job.

* * *

Neji stared at Gaara, who smirked back at him.

"Nice show you put on last night Hyuga, really entertaining." He said, messing with the trivial stuff on Neji's desk.

"Gaara, you have too much time on your hands." Neji retorted, picking up the morning news paper.

"I'm kind of curious as to how long this sharade of you and your "girlfriend" can go on. Should we make it a game?" Gaara taunted.

Neji chuckled.

"Yeah, you couldn't make it with that kind of girl anyway. Look what happened with you and Ten-Ten. You'd probably only last two days with barbie. " Gaara continued, getting under Neji's skin.

"You've become really moody now-a-days. Is there something you want to come out about?"

"I'm just bored. What's the point of working since the money is there for me to take and enjoy. You know I'm not suited for the business life."

"Do I? You're all play Sabaku."

"How about this? Since you're looking for a new face for your company, how about you use her? She's gorgeous, even I have to admit it."

"What? You want me to make her the face of my company? Are you trying to purposely run me down and get my family to disown me? I didn't know you hated me that much Sabaku."

Losen up and play with me won't you? I mean, how hard can it be to turn an already gorgeous girl into an Icon?"

"You're really bored huh?" Neji was never one to turn down a challenge anyway, and since Gaara was being so persistant, the least he could do for his "friend" was play along with the whole game. Besides, Gaara was right. The blonde girl already had the looks, all she needed to do was be taught proper ettiquete.

"You have 3 1/2 months to make that girl famous _and _maintain your bogus relationship. If you do a great job of making her someone famous and are able to keep your relationship until the end of the three months, I'll personally pay you fifty grand in cash on the spot." Gaara extended his hand.

Neji smiked, reaching out to shake Gaara's hand.

"If you lose though, I guess we're going to have to see what I make you do huh Hyuga?"

" I won't get excited since I won't lose. You don't know what you're getting yourself into. " He told the red-head.

Gaara grinned.

"This is going to be fun. I should go now huh?" He said heading for the door. When he opened it, Ino was there, reaching out for it at the same time.

"Speak of the devil." Gaara said, giving her a chesire smile.

Ino greeted him respectfully, ignoring the sinister look he was giving her. She wondered how such a handsome man could be so evil looking.

She walked past him to Neji's office and sat in his client chair.

"Good morning Sunshine!" Her loud voice boomed in Neji's ear, causing him to be annoyed at her presence.

Gaara looked at the two. Things were about to get interesting around here.

* * *

**_Hey guys, thank you so much for the reviews. I really enjoyed them. Are you guys ready for the next world wind of chapters? I'm not lying this time when I say things are about to get crazy. Anyway, thanks for reading and as usual please excuse the error. I admit I did not edit this because I was in a rush to upload it. I also want to say thank you to all of you who took time to read my story on wattpad, it means a lot to me and hopefully you guys will leave reviews next time._**

**_Few Thing you're probably curious about:_**

**_A) Ino is indeed anemic. I think it just adds to her character and makes her more dynamic and interesting. I have a lot of ideas on how to use the Anemia to bring her and Neji closer. (I'm sorry if that offends anybody. Anemia is not a joke, it's very serious)._**

**_B)What's the big deal between Sakura and Ino? It will most likely be announced it the next chapter. I think it's kinda obvious now, no? Leave your guesses in the review section!_**

**_C)What's Gaara's problem? Haha, Gaara is an antagonist. He's out to get Neji obviously...I just don't know why yet either, lol! Gaara is one of the three antagonist along with Sakura and another character who will remain a surprise even though I'm sure it's kinda obvious who it will be. I'm not good at this surprise thing..._**

**_D)...I can't think of anything else... Thanks for reading though and I hope to see you next chapter! See ya soon!_**


	10. Ten: Ino's Debut

_**Charming and Charmless**_

_**Chapter 10- Ino's Debut**_

* * *

"Will you tell me where we're going?" Ino asked anxiously, putting her hand out of the window of Neji's jet black convertible.

The wind as blowing dramatically like in the movies and her blonde hair was moving with it. It was like a dream come true. She had always wanted to ride in a convertible and let her her flow as she drove. She still couldn't wrap her head around the fact she was in a brand new convertible!

Neji had been driving for about fifteen minutes now and Ino had been yapping non-stop. He had never met anyone who had never been in a convertible or overly excited about the fact they could feel the wind blowing their hair. Ino though, was easily excited by it all.

He didn't normally drive on his own and this was proof that he should never drive on his own, especially if this woman was around him.

Ino put her hand back in the car and stared at Neji while he drove. It made him very uncomfortable at how quiet she had gotten.

"What?" He asked annoyed.

"Where could we possibly be going in this lovely car? Are we about to go to the country club?" She asked excited.

"Yeah right. I'd never put myself in such an embarassing situation. It's a club for classy people. There's a big difference in acting classy and being classy and just because you're pretending to date me doesn't mean you automatically turn classy either."

Ino stuck her tounge out at him and raised her fist to hit him, but she quickly smiled at him when he turned to look at her with a glare.

"You're no fun Hyuga." She smiled sweetly.

Neji rolled his eyes and clicked a button which activated the top of the car. Ino shook her head unwillingly. She didn't want the top down at all! She was enjoying it too much. She leaned over Neji, to the side of the door, trying to find the button that he had click.

"What the hell are you doing?" Neji asked, veering off his lane, trying to avoid the awkward position they were in. If anybody had seen them, they would have thought Ino was doing something _naughty_ to him and he didn't like that thought at all.

Ino sat back up, unhappy had the fact that pushing random buttons, hoping one of them would open the top of the convertible again, but none of it worked.

"Hey! Why must you ruin my moment of fun! I told you I've never been in a convertible before!" She crossed her arms and pouted.

Neji looked at her again, sucked his teeth and shook his head.

"How old are you exactly?" He asked.

"You're never suppose to ask a woman her age." She retaliated.

"You're about 20 aren't you? You act just as immature as Hanabi." Neji mumbled, but Ino heard him. They had turn into an abandoned lot and he parked his car.

"For your information I'm twenty-five and I'll be twenty-six in two months." She scolded him, unbuckling her seat belt as Neji got out of his car.

"That explains the crow feet." Neji said, slamming the door of his car and began walking away and unbeknownst to Ino, grinning. He knew that would get under her skin because he figured she was the type of girl who cared way too much about how she looked.

"C-c-crows feet? Yah! You wanna die Hyuga?" She asked, slamming her side door, running to catch up to him.

* * *

When she caught up to him, she gave him a mouthful and he successfully ignored her as she continued to nag him.

When they got into the elevator of the building, she had finally shut up.

"Where are we anyway?" She asked looking around. The elevator they were in was transparent and all Ino saw were white rooms that they kept passing.

"You're at a photo shoot. Just do what ever they ask of you okay? Don't ask me anymore questions." He warned her.

"But-"

Neji walked out of the elevator and truth be told they were at a photo shoot. There was a man with a camera waiting for them as well as clothes and flashing lights in the warehouse. Ino had remembered something like this when she was younger and she use to model. She followed Neji, her mouth completely down to the floor with a delightful look of surprise.

"Mr. Hyuga, it's a pleasure to work with you! This must be Miss Ino." The man said, looking at her.

She looked at Neji, confused.

"Yeah, she's not usually this shy. She's actually very...talkative." Neji admitted.

Ino glaread at him, then looked back at the photographer, smiled and greet him politely.

"She's the one I was talking about. I want you to do a great job with her Kamenashi. You know you're my family's trusted photographer." Neji ordered.

"Of course sir! You won't be able to tell it's the same person when you see her in the pictures. Tsukiko, come get her dressed please!"

Before Ino could say anything, she was whisked away by a short woman who didn't even take the time to smile. She looked back at Neji for help, but he gestured for her to go on.

"I can tell she's already photogenic. She's going to be a great spokes model. She's gorgeous. She'll look even better in the pictures!" Kamenashi winked.

Neji nodded, believing in him. The man had been responsible for all the Hyuga pictures such as weddings, family pictures, and holiday cards.

Though Neji felt he had already seen Ino at her best at the Uchiha's party, he wondered what she would look like in the photos.

* * *

Ino stared at the short woman then back at the ball gown. She had just came from getting her make up done and now she was wearing a wedding dress.

"Excuse me...why am I wearing a wedding gown? I-I'm not getting m-married!" She stuttered. She hoped to God that Neji had not told people that they were getting married because the lie would have to stop there.

The woman stopped in front of her, finally smiling at her...It was weird.

"You're here to take pictures for the family's new Wedding dress line. Your head will be cut out of the pictures, but Mr. Hyuga just felt that you were the right kind of model we were looking for." She bowed.

Wedding dress line? She didn't even know Neji's family sold wedding dresses.

"Uh...okay."

The lady led her out of the dressing room to the hall where they had came from. She was hoped that she wouldn't mess this up for Neji or his family's business.

"Wow! You look gorgeous!" Kamenashi smiled as Ino walked shyly up to him.

Neji had been fiddling with his phone when he heard the commotion around the set. Many of the workers had been whispering about the model and how amazing and natural she looked.

He walked towards the set and Ino was already there, in a wedding gown, smiling as if she was really getting married.

She looked nice, pure and simple even though gown itself was obnoxious and puffy. Neji had seen beautiful women plenty of times, but this woman had to be the most natural looking he had ever had the chance of seeing and her smile was contagious. He couldn't help but smile.

Maybe choosing Ino to be the model for his family fashion line wasn't such a bad idea. He could confidently win his bet with Gaara after all.

* * *

After about twenty-five different dresses, ranging from wedding gowns to casual sundresses, Neji was ready to go. Ino on the other hand was having a blast.

"You are a natural Ino! Have you done this before?" Kamenashi asked, after the shoot was over.

"I wanted to model after high school." Ino admitted aloud. Ever since things went down hill with Sakura and she didn't get the modeling debut she deserved, she had never said to anybody else besides those she were close to that she wanted to be a model. It had seem like such a far fetched dream.

"What happened?"

She smiled nervously.

"I just never got the chance to, that's all!"

"Well, here's your chance!" Kamenashi winking, congratulating her on a job well done.

On their way back to Ino's apartment, the car ride was quiet, but in a comfortable way. Neji noticed Ino's pleasant mood since she kept smiling like there was no tomorrow.

"What are you smiling about?" He asked, still concentrating on the road.

"How did you know?" She asked him.

"Know...what?"

"I always wanted to be a model. That was like a dream come true for me." She gushed, her smile getting bigger.

He actually didn't know about her interest in being a model. If anything, he was doing this for himself not her.

"Remember when we met at the mall the other time?"

She giggled.

"Yeah, and I was about to kick your ass."

"Uh...sure. I heard you telling your friend that you missed the audition. Ironically, I was the one holding auditions for my company that, figured I'd pay you back. Besides, I figured you looked the part anyway so it was better than having to look for another model." He shrugged, putting his good memory into use.

"Wow...did you just call me pretty?" Ino asked in shock.

"I never _ever_ said that." Neji denied.

"You totally did! I mean you didn't say it word for word but you said 'I figure you looked the part'. Models are usually very attractive people so technically you just told me you found me very attractive."

"You're delusional. I never said such a thing." He refused.

Ino laughed amused. Neji smiled, causing Ino stare at him,then joined back in smiling.

"Thank you for making my dreams come true. I won't ever forget it." She said softley.

"This is creeping me out." Neji said, dissatisfied with the mushy mood.

"Guess that rules out giving you a hug." Ino teased

"Unless you want to get into a car accident, I wouldn't try it."

Ino smiled, enjoying the comfortable mood between them.

* * *

* Five Days Later *

* * *

"Ino Yamanaka, if you do not open this door in ten seconds, I will break it down!" Karin's loud voice screeched causing both Deidara and Sai to cover their ears. It was nine in the morning and she was already this loud.

Ino, on the other hand, turned over in her bed lazily. She could hear Karin's voice but she chose to ignore it.

"Instead of listening to Karin's annoying voice, how about we use a key?" Deidara said, reaching for the item in a flower pot Ino usually kept outside of her door.

"So you knew there was a key there the whole time and yet you made us listen to Karin's screech?" Sai asked annoyed.

Deidara shrugged as he opened Ino's apartment. Karin pushed the two out of the way as she ran with the magazine in her hand to Ino's room.

Ino's eyes snapped open when she felt someone hoovering over her like a predator. She woke up to three different pairs of eyes staring down at her.

"Seriously guys, it's too early in the morning for this! How did you get in my apartment anyway?" she asked, turning her face back into the pillow.

Karin's sat on top of her and grabbed her golden hair, causing her to cry in pain.

"Get off me crazy! Are you guys just going to watch?" Ino pleaded, trying her best to push Karin off. Sai and Deidara just turned their heads. Karin was very rough...even to men.

"I'll let go once you explain this!" The red-head said holding the magazine to Ino's face.

Ino unwillingly looked at the magazine only to find herself in it, smiling like there was no tomorrow.

"How did you get this?" She asked, grabbing the magazine and managed to get Karin off her.

It was the picture she took five days ago .

"You the one who should be telling us how you got a six page spread in AneCan, probably Japan's top fashion magazine!" Karin exclaimed.

"Six pages?"

"Should we be worried that you don't even know that there are a gazillion pictures of you in a popular magazine?" Deidara asked, uninterested in the topic. He didn't know why Karin woke him up at eight in the morning to announce this to him.

Sai sat on the edge of his bed, his arms folded as he tried to put two and two together.

"I was wondering what you've been up to the last few days. I haven't seen you in a while! Why didn't you tell us you got a modeling job?" He asked, delighted for her.

"Honestly, I don't even know what's going on! I need you guys to get out so I can figure this out." She demanded as she got off her bed and began to force them out.

Neji was so dead!

* * *

Sakura sat at her office, drinking coffee and listening to music like she always did every morning before a photo shoot. Lately, she had been very fidgety since meeting Ino. It had been a few days since they ran into each other at the party and things had quieted down and she hadn't see Ino again at any social gathering since that night.

She had been hearing rumors that Ino was Neji's new girlfriend which made no sense because Ino was no where near Neji's type. She felt better when at each social gathering, Ino was not there to confront her again. She couldn't risk loosing everything especially since she had to degrade herself to get to where she was today.

"Sakura! Sakura! Have you seen AneCan's new spread!"

Sakura looked up at her assistant Kin, who was running towards her with a magazine.

"AneCan? You mean the spread I couldn't do for them?" Sakura asked as Kin passed the magazine to her.

"Yes! It turned out to be a six page spread. They got a brand new model. It's all over the news too! They're calling her the new "it girl" already!" Kin panicked.

Sakura was never really one to worry about competition. She was already at the top of her game and prided herself in the fact that no new model could replace her. _She __was _Uchiha Sasuke's girlfriend after all.

When she turned to the spread how ever, that confidence dropped and that feeling was replaced by fear and shock.

Here was Ino Yamanaka, in a six page spread in one of the most widely read Japanese magazine in the world.

Sakura quickly skimmed through all the pages in order to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Unfortunately for her, all she saw was Ino, posing and smiling graciously on each page. In anger, Sakura threw the magazine across the room startling Karin.

"S-Sakura!"

"Leave me alone right now!" She demanded.

Kin scurried off, leaving Sakura by herself.

"Shit!" She yelled angrily, knocking the cup of coffee over.

Ino was back to get her for the incident that took place seven years ago. Sakura had no choice but to take her down before Ino got the chance to bring her down too.

She had to find Gaara!

* * *

Ino hid behind the wall of Neji's building. For the first time in her life, people were following her and taking pictures of her.

She didn't mind the attention but she was not in the mood for it at the moment. She tucked her hair under the baseball cap and pushed the sun glasses to her face. What she was most upset about was the fact that her disguise did not match at all with her innocent look. She was wearing a white sundress with pink and black roses on it as well as a pink cardigan and black combat boots. Any other day this outfit would look good, but not today.

She finally came out of hiding as she quickly sneaked into the building.

She sighed as she took of the disguise. People took notice and stared at her as she walked straight to the elevator and pressed Neji's floor number.

Before the elevator could close, Gaara stepped into the elevator, giving her a seductive grin as he joined her.

"Going to see your boyfriend?" He asked as the door closed gently with no one else in the elevator but him and her.

Ino shyly greeted him as she nodded. She always felt strange and nervous around him. Something about him was very..._bad ass. _It drove her nuts! She liked the feeling.

Then she thought about how he was the one who started this whole ridiculous dating rumor in the first place. She made body language that showed she was upset with him.

"You're all over the paper. You're very gorgeous, you know?" He smiled, grabbing the magazine out of her hand and opening to the spread she was featured in.

"Thank you." She was starting to feel like she was suffocating. Gaara was making her woozy. She felt cramped in the elevator with him.

"I guess I should be the first in congratulating you on becoming the face of Hyuga Fashion International." He grinned, holding out his hand for her to shake it.

She wanted to question him, but ignored it as she shook his hand. She would ask Neji about everything anyway.

The elevator door opened and Ino gracefully made her escape and ran straight to Neji's office, Gaara watching her.

"I have such a creep for a little brother."

Gaara turned his attention to his older Temari who had her hand crossed, shaking her head at him.

* * *

Neji wasn't surprised when Ino barged into his office, demanding an explanation. He had been waiting for her all morning actually to come and ask a billion questions like she was currently doing. She was very predictable.

"Are you listening to me?" She asked annoyed.

"You told Kamenashi you always wanted to be a model right?" Neji asked.

"Yes, what does that have to do with anything?" She asked.

"Well he was the one who got in contact with AneCan and convinced them to give you the spread. I was simply going to let you keep the pictures, not use it to turn you into a model over night."

Neji didn't know if being around this intimidating girl made him become a liar or perhaps it was Gaara, but he had been lying through his teeth lately to almost everyone. He knew his intentions when he asked for Kamenashi to take the photos and distribute them to his business partners. He never expected them end up in a fashion magazine either.

Almost every entertainment center and modeling agency had been calling his families office to get a hold of her and her manager.

Ino sighed as she slumped into his chair and sat down.

"Don't you want this? Why aren't you running with this chance? You said it yourself that you wanted to become a model. This might never happen again for you."

Ino thought about it. He was right. She hadnt really taken the chance to look at the photos until now. They had turned out beauriful. She felt like it was a different person she was staring at, not herself.

"You're right..."She said, still unsure. "This is what I wanted my whole life. I deserve it!"

"Good, glad you think so because you have a press conference in three hours. Let's go." Neji said getting up from his chair.

"Press conference? What if I didn't agree to being a model?" She asked surprised as she followed him.

"Oh trust me, you would have." He said walking out the door.

The two walked to his secretary's front desk.

"I'll meet you at the elevator." He told her as he shooed her off.

Ino stuck her tongue out at him as she started to walk to the hallway where the elevators where. She couldn't believe she was about to become a model. She couldn't help but walk in glee, almost dancing to the elevator. Her attention how ever was diverted when she saw a familiar looking spiky bun.

She couldn't believe it at first, but Shikamaru was standing at the elevator, waiting patiently for it to come up.

This was perfect! She good tell him the good news then and there and maybe impulsively tell him how she felt. She knew she was going to far, but she was in such a great mood, she felt like she could do anything.

She smiled happily as she started walking faster to catch up to him until something made her stop in her foot tracks.

"Shika-" She called, her voice fading as she saw a blonde hair woman with an eye color that was identical to her's. She was wearing a black dress and was gorgeous.

The woman folded her arms, staring him up and down, almost amused. Shikamaru smiled back at her, the lazy smile Ino had been so use to. The lazy smile she had been convinced was only meant for her.

"Yamanaka!"

Neji's voice almost cut through the silence. His voice echoed through the hallway and before Shikamaru could see her she turned around and started walk back to the lobby.

She didn't know what she was feeling. She didn't know what that smile he had given that woman meant. She knew however, that she didn't like it.

* * *

**_Hello! As always, thank you for the lovely reviews, most of you guys guessed right about Ino and Sakura. I truly enjoyed writing this chapter, probably my favorite so far. I will put the link to the wedding dress on my profile. I do not own AneCan. It is an actual Japanese magazine. Ino sure has a lot of antagonist huh? Neji too is kinda turning into a liar...dun dun dun dunnn...What could Sakura be up too? And Gaara? What's going on with Shikamaru too? And no, Ino won't become addicted to the lime light...hopefully..._**

**_All to be answered very soon! Please excuse the grammar, spelling and other mistakes, I did not edit. Also sorry about the awkward uploading day. I figure it'd better to upload now than on Friday...I'll probably regret it. Thank you for also supporting me on wattpad (insert smiley face). If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out my original story on wattpad. My name is SolarNaylor. Sorry if I forget anything. Thanks for reading and see you soon!_**


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